The 2018 Randwick Guineas calls for the Gerald Ryan-trained Trapeze Artist who proved his Golden Rose win from the spring was no fluke with a first-up win in the Group 2 $200,000 Expressway Stakes (1200m) over the weekend.
Golden Rose winner Trapeze Artist was impressive winning the 2018 Expressway Stakes first-up. Photo: Steve Hart.
The three-year-old son of Snitzel is best known for his tearaway, all-the-way success in the Group 1 Golden Rose (1400m) last September, which he won by over four lengths at blowout odds.
A failed Coolmore Stud Stakes 15th down the Flemington straight followed, but the colt was quick to atone first-up at Rosehill Gardens.
Ridden by Tim Clark, Trapeze Artist ($3.60) had over a length to spare over the Team Hawkes-trained runner-up Showtime ($9.50) in the Expressway Stakes results.
It was a diminutive field of just six runners, with the trifecta rounded-out by the beaten Bjorn Baker-trained favourite Addictive Nature ($2.50).
The Expressway Stakes success was exactly what Ryan wanted to see from Trapeze Artist, a horse he has always had a high opinion of.
“He is a nice colt, I have a lot of time for him,” Ryan told the media post-win on Saturday.
“This horse needs a bit of room where he can get into a rhythm and use his big stride.
“He can’t sit there and sprint, but he’s very tough and he will keep grinding everything else into the ground.
“For a colt, he is very quiet, takes no notice of anything around him, eats all his feed, but on the track he works like a ‘maidener’.
“I always reckon he flies under the radar a bit but this autumn I think you will see a very good horse.”
Clark had Trapeze Artist settled just off the pace set by eventual last-placed mare Memes, the winner hitting the front with 300m left to travel and holding the rest at bay without trouble.
Ryan has the Group 1 winner heading towards a March 10 run in the Group 1 $1 million Randwick Guineas (1600m), although how Trapeze Artist will handle the mile remains up in the air according to his Expressway Stakes winning hoop Clark.
“The way Trapeze Artist won the Golden Rose last spring you would say he would run a mile — but the Randwick mile is arduous,” he said.
“In saying that, he could not have been more impressive today.
“He took a few runs last preparation to find his peak but Gerald has more of a handle on him these days.”
Ryan agreed that the 1600m is an unknown, but remained hopeful that Trapeze Artist would continue to improve and impress.
“Whether he gets 1600m or not we will see,” he said on Saturday.
“He did get a bit tired near the line today but he only had the one trial going into this race so he will improve.
“After he won the Golden Rose, he had that setback and in hindsight maybe we shouldn’t have taken him to Melbourne.
“But since he has been back in work, he has been really flying.
“He trialled really well, he went better than I thought he would, so I expected him to run a big race today.”
The traditional Randwick Guineas lead-up is scheduled for Trapeze Artist next race, the Group 2 $400,000 Hobartville Stakes (1400m) running at Rosehill on February 24.
The past five Randwick Guineas winners all had their final lead-up in the Hobartville Stakes, with both Dissident (2014) and Hallowed Crown (2015) doing the double.
Get behind Trapeze Artist over the autumn at the right racing odds now through Ladbrokes.com.au.
2018 Expressway Stakes Results & Finishing Order
Rosehill Race 7 – 03/02/2018
| Place | # | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Br. | Weight | SP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | TRAPEZE ARTIST | Gerald Ryan | Tim Clark | – | 6 | 55.5kg | $3.60 |
| 2 | 7 | SHOWTIME | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | Brenton Avdulla | 1.25L | 5 | 55.5kg | $9.50 |
| 3 | 8 | ADDICTIVE NATURE | Bjorn Baker | Jason Collett | 1.45L | 2 | 55.5kg | $2.50F |
| 4 | 2 | GLOBAL GLAMOUR | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Kerrin McEvoy | 1.9L | 3 | 56.5kg | $4.20 |
| 5 | 4 | ACE HIGH | David Payne | Tye Angland | 2.3L | 1 | 55.5kg | $15 |
| 6 | 3 | MEMES | Jason Coyle | Ms Rachel King (a) | 7.3L | 4 | 56.5kg | $16 |
| – | 1 | TOP STRIKER | Gregory Hickman | Corey Brown | – | 0 | – | – |
| – | 6 | GOODFELLA | Bjorn Baker | Blake Shinn | – | 0 | – | – |
