Tulsa is set to make the trip to Sydney for the 2016 Royal Randwick Guineas after he was included in the nominations for the Group 1 event that will be held on Saturday.
Tulsa (outside) is set to make his Sydney racing debut in the 2016 Royal Randwick Guineas this weekend. Photo by: Ultimate Racing Photos
Moroney has included both Tivaci and Tulsa in the nominations for the Group 1 Australian Guineas (1600m) at Flemington as well as the Group 1 Royal Randwick Guineas (1600m) in Sydney.
Tivaci earnt ballot-exempt entry into the Australian Guineas following his controversial win on protest in the Group 3 CS Hayes Stakes (1400m) and he will stay in Melbourne for the $750,000 event, but Tulsa is well down the order of entry and will likely head to Sydney for the Royal Randwick Guineas.
Tulsa started his 2016 Melbourne Festival Of Racing preparation in the Group 3 Manfred Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield on February 6 and he finished a credible eighth before he hit the line strongly after being settled at the tail of the field in the CS Hayes Stakes.
Moroney said that Tulsa is a horse that he has struggled with due to the fact that he is not a big eater, but he has thrived since his impressive CS Hayes Stakes effort and he is confident that the son of Sebring will run well in whatever race he contests this weekend.
“He is one of those horses that is not a great eater and he doesn’t take a lot of work, but this time he bounced through the run better than the first-up run,” Moroney said.
“I am really happy with him, he is going the right way and he looks really well.
“He has eaten better.
“I thought that if he had ducked in behind them he might have won the race, which would have been a good effort because at one stage he was a long way off them.
“It was a good effort.”
Moroney is chasing his first win in the Royal Randwick Guineas after finishing third Great Command in 1997 and missing the placings with Absolutelyawesome in 2011, while he finished third with Jokers Wild in the 2007 edition of the Australian Guineas.
Tulsa is currently available at 2016 Australian Guineas odds of $13 with Ladbrokes and he is priced at Royal Randwick Guineas odds of $14, while Tivaci is $10 in Australian Guineas betting and $10 in Royal Randwick Guineas betting.
