Trainer Mike Moroney is happy with the fitness levels of imported stayer Voleuse De Coeurs and believes that she is ready to run a big race in the 2014 The BMW Stakes at Rosehill Gardens this weekend.
Voleuse De Coeurs is chasing her maiden win in Australia in the 2014 The BMW Stakes at Rosehill Gardens this weekend. Photo by: Race Horse Photos Australia
Voleuse De Coeurs returned to racing with a promising fifth behind Fiorente in the Group 1 Australian Cup (2000m) at Flemington on March 8 and Moroney told Racing Ahead this morning that the Teofilo mare had taken plenty of benefit out of her first-up run.
Moroney said that he deliberately kept Voleuse De Coeurs on the fresh side heading into the Australian Cup, but has given the five-year-old plenty of work in the past three weeks to make sure that she is close to peak fitness for The BMW Stakes this weekend.
“Her fitness levels have improved and we have put a bit more pressure on her to get her ready for this one,” Moroney said.
“We have probably thrown an extra nice gallop into her.
“Signs are very good; she has tightened up a bit, is eating well and seems really settled in herself.
“I know that she is a very good staying mare and she is really starting to impress us.
“Now that we have got her a little bit fitter we have her really relaxed and she is really starting to show signs that she is a natural stayer.
“From here on it is going to be very interesting for us.”
Voleuse De Coeurs will be making her Sydney racing debut in The BMW Stakes this weekend and Moroney does not believe that she will have any problems handling the Rosehill Gardens track.
The 2013 Irish St Leger winner produced a number of her best performances on right-handed tracks in Ireland and Moroney is confident that the talented mare will be suited by the Sydney way of going on Saturday.
“She hasn’t had any trouble getting around these Aussie tracks so far, but admittedly she has gone around Flemington both times,” Moroney said.
“She has galloped around Moonee Valley a couple of times and looks to have gotten around there well.
“She is pretty good on her feet and I expect Rosehill and the right handed way of going to really suit her.
“She has a lot of form at Curragh, which is right handed.”
Voleuse De Coeurs showed plenty of tactical versatility during her racing career in Europe and has raced midfield in her two starts in Australia to date in the Group 1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) and the Group 1 Australian Cup.
Moroney said that he will be leaving the riding instructions up to jockey Glen Boss, who rates the mare highly heading into The BMW, but expects Voleuse De Coeurs to settle towards the middle of the field in the Group 1 event this weekend.
“It just depends what speed is going to be in the race; she can do either or,” Moroney said.
“She jumped and put herself in the race in the Australian Cup and she has a little bit of gate speed.
“I would expect that she would end up midfield.”
Moroney is chasing his first win in The BMW Stakes after finishing third with imported stayer Drunken Sailor in the 2012 edition of the race.
