Team Snowden is uncertain how their quality mare Tycoon Tara will handle the tricky Eagle Farm track in the Group 1 $700,000 Darley Kingsford-Smith Cup (1300m) on Saturday.
Tycoon Tara, above, will be having her first start at Eagle Farm in the Kingsford -Smith Cup. Photo by Steve Hart.
Like many trainers Peter and Paul Snowden don’t know if their horses will handle the new shifty surface and Tycoon Tara will be having her first run at Eagle Farm in the weight for age Kingsford-Smith Cup which is the new version of the Group 1 BTC Cup which was previously run over 1200m at Doomben during the Brisbane Winter Carnival.
“Like a lot of trainers we just don’t know what to expect on Saturday,” Paul Snowden told AAP.
“As far as I can learn some horses seem to love the Eagle Farm track while others can’t go at all in it.
“But how do you predict which ones are which. I don’t know and we will have to wait and see.”
The Eagle Farm track was rated a heavy 8 on Friday morning and Tycoon Tara’s wet track record of a win on both a heavy track and a soft track should go a long way towards her handling the controversial surface.
Eagle Farm track manager Sean Bridges was feeling positive heading into the weekend and is expecting an upgrade into the soft range for the Kingsford-Smith Cup meeting if the weather holds out.
“It is a beautiful drying day up in here in Queensland today so hopefully it might get back to a soft 7,” Bridges told racing.com.
“The forecast is really good. Mid-twenties, light breeze. We have some heavy dews at the moment just keeping it in that softish heavy range.”
“The weather looks pretty good with maybe a chance of a shower on Saturday.”
“I think the track will play really fair. It will definitely race with some give in it. The issues with the track have been well spoken about. We have done a lot of rectification work and there is still a fair bit to go.”
“As far as the track condition is, I don’t think it could be any better, a beautiful cover of grass.”
“I think the track will play fairly, maybe later in the day they might start to get off the fence a little bit.”
Tycoon Tara was in dynamic form during the 2016 Sydney Spring Carnival with three wins from four starts, the Group 2 $175,000 Missile Stakes (1200m) and the Group 3 $125,000 Show County Quality (1200m) at Randwick and the Group 2 $400,000 Golden Pendant (1400m) at Rosehill.
Tycoon Tarra is struggling to regain her Spring form with two unplaced runs during the 2017 Sydney Autumn Carnival, a first up twelfth to Secret Agenda in the Group 2 $300,000 Sapphire Stakes (1200m) at Randwick followed by a fifth to Rich Charm in the $250,000 VOBIS Gold Sprint (1200m) at Caulfield on April 22.
The Snowdens have freshened the Written Tycoon mare up and she heads to Eagle Farm on the back of a 798m barrier trial win at Warwick Farm on May 15 and has drawn awkwardly at barrier ten in the thirteen horse field with Kerrin McEvoy to ride.
Ladbrokes.com.au has listed Tycoon Tara as one of the outsiders for the Kingsford-Smith Cup at $19 while the Darren Weir trained Black Heart Bart heads the market order at $3.40.
