Rise At Dawn given the go ahead for the Stradbroke
Lindsay Park may never get a better chance to break its Stradbroke Handicap duck after co-trainer Ben Hayes gave Rise At Dawn the green light to join a vaunted attack on Queensland's greatest race.
The famous racing dynasty has never won the Stradbroke but has raging $2.80 favourite War Machine, the sizzling winner of the BRC Sprint, and $8 second betting fancy Rise At Dawn.
Rise At Dawn finished 2-1/2 lengths off Joliestar in Saturday's Group 1 Kingsford Smith Cup and Hayes, who trains in partnership with his brothers Will and JD, is keen to give him a Group 1 shot seven days later.
Rise At Dawn carried 59kg in the Kingsford Smith Cup, but now plunges to 52.5kg in the Stradbroke.
'I was quite happy with his run on Saturday as he was racing at short of his best trip and was racing at weight-for-age against some of the best sprinters in Australia,' Hayes said.
'He sat in behind the speed, he held his run right to the line and looks to have pulled up well.
'He now drops a stack in weight so that's a huge thing.'
READ: Zac on rare quest to score consecutive Stradbroke Handicaps
Can Ben, Will and JD Hayes (L to R) upstage dad David Hayes, pictured here with his wife and the boys mum Prue Hayes, by winning a Stradbroke Handicap on Saturday? Photo :.
There have been few Stradbroke contenders in history who have been a shorter price than what War Machine is six days out from the great race.
Hayes indicated War Machine had improved from the last time he was seen at the races, when blowing away his opposition and stamping his Stradbroke ticket when dominating his rivals by 2-3/4 lengths in the BRC Sprint.
Hayes said both War Machine and Rise At Dawn had golden chances in the $3 million Group 1 handicap.
READ: Inquiry into jockey altercation set to resume in Stradbroke week
'Fingers crossed, you can have the two favourites but you can still get beat, but to be honest I couldn't be happier with both of these horses,' Hayes said.
'Either one of them could win.
'The big boy (War Machine) is well.
'His last run was a perfect tune-up for the Straddy and he is a very progressive horse who gets in with 53kg.
'He's a horse who is a bit lazy in trackwork, like Mr Brightside, but he turns up race day.'
War Machine was elevated to Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap favouritism after his dominant win in the BRC Sprint. Picture: Grant Peters, Trackside Photography.
* Roughie king Maloney strikes again with Derby pick-up ride
In other Stradbroke-related news:
* Chris Waller gave boom three-year-old colt Angel Capital an exhibition gallop at the Gold Coast races on Saturday. It is likely Angel Capital would make the Stradbroke final field cut-off, but Waller is undecided about whether to race the Yulong owned youngster.
* Matt Dale is strongly considering giving evergreen veteran Front Page a shot at the Stradbroke after winning the Moreton Cup on Saturday. Connections would need to pay a hefty late entry fee and Dale will decide in the next 24 years whether to unleash the rising nine-year-old on the Stradbroke. Dale has never tested Front Page over 1400m but the prospect of a weaker Stradbroke and a week of fine weather may convince connections to deploy the proven Group 1 performer.
* Tony Gollan is holding out hope that Transatlantic will sneak into the Stradbroke field. Transatlantic will jump over other contenders in the ballot order after his win in the Listed Spear Chief Handicap on Saturday at Eagle Farm. After narrowly missing the Stradbroke field with Antino and Freedom Rally in the last two years, Gollan hopes Transatlantic has done enough to make the field. He is now a $13 chance.
* Trainer Rob Heathcote says Rothfire 'trotted up 95 per cent sound' on Sunday morning in his recovery from a foot injury. 'He's only a slim chance of racing in the Straddy, but he's still a chance,' Heathcote said.
Originally published as Lindsay Park's second seed joins vaunted attack on Stradbroke Handicap
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