Tommy Berry will be relying heavily on Brutal’s outstanding ability to help overcome the outside barrier in the $7.5m Golden Eagle (1500m) at Rosehill on Saturday.
Brutal, above in blue and gold colours, drew the outside barrier in the 2019 Golden Eagle at Rosehill. Photo by Steve Hart.
The Team Hawkes trained Brutal came up with barrier seventeen of seventeen for the inaugural running of the Golden Eagle and Berry will wait until Friday night before working out a race plan.
“At least I’m on a good horse. Good horses overcome obstacles and Brutal is a good horse,” Berry told Racenet.
“Initial thought is gee, I’m going to have to give him a good ride.”
“I’m going to have to give him an absolute 10 out of 10 from out there.
“Barrier draws are barrier draws, you can’t change them and something had to draw the outside, unfortunately it was me.
“I won’t even think about it again until Friday night when I sit down and do my form to formulate a few possible plans.”
“Hawkesy won’t give me any instructions as they never do. Things won’t be complicated, put it that way.
Group 1 winning mare Sunlight likes to race on the pace and has drawn in barrier sixteen and Berry could get a free cart across the field and try to slot in just behind the speed.
“Sunlight has the draw to my inside, Fasika’s in 11 so there’s a bit of speed to take me across. I’ll be there somewhere,” Berry said.
Brutal showed his class during the 2019 Sydney Autumn Carnival with a dominant win as a three year old over the older horses in the Group 1 $3m The Star Doncaster Mile (1600m) at Randwick with Glen Boss in the saddle.
Berry then took over the reins when Brutal resumed as a four year old to win the Group 2 $500,000 Bisley Workwear Premiere Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on October 5 before running third in the Group 3 $500,000 Camera House Sydney Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on October 19.
The step up the 1500m of the Golden Eagle will suit Brutal as this stage of his preparation and bookies at Ladbrokes.com.au have the Team Hawkes trained colt on the second line of betting at $5.
The Chris Waller trained Arcadia Queen is the ruling favourite for the Golden Eagle and was quickly backed in from $4 to $2.80 after drawing barrier five.
James McDonald will stick with Arcadia Queen who was a well beaten eleventh as favourite last start in the $14m The Everest (1200m) at Randwick on October 19.
Arcadia Queen’s stablemate Kolding is also well fancied in the betting at $5.50 and will jump from gate four with Boss in the saddle.
Betting for the 2019 Golden Eagle at Ladbrokes.com.au: $2.80 Arcadia Queen, $5 Brutal, $5.50 Kolding, $7.50 Classique Legend, $9.50 The Inevitable, $21 Fasika, $26 Sunlight, $31 Never No More, Mizzy, $51 Military Zone, $61 Gem Song, $71 Beat Le Bon, $81 Behemoth, $101 I Am Superman, $126 Zousain, $201 Fun Fact, Jonker.
Final field for the 2019 Golden Eagle (1500m)
| No | Last 10 | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight | Hcp Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11x3621x13 | BRUTAL (NZ) | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | Tommy Berry | 17 | 57.5kg | 112 |
| 2 | 1131×236 | CLASSIQUE LEGEND | Les Bridge | Kerrin McEvoy | 1 | 57.5kg | 110 |
| 3 | 331111×511 | KOLDING (NZ) | Chris Waller | Glen Boss | 4 | 57.5kg | 108 |
| 4 | x11118x111 | THE INEVITABLE | Scott Brunton | Nash Rawiller | 3 | 57.5kg | 107 |
| 5 | 154134×324 | GEM SONG | Kris Lees | Brenton Avdulla | 9 | 57.5kg | 104 |
| 6 | x422x20x69 | ZOUSAIN | Chris Waller | Glyn Schofield | 12 | 57.5kg | 102 |
| 7 | 1x272x2418 | BEHEMOTH | David Jolly | Todd Pannell | 8 | 57.5kg | 96 |
| 8 | 41x6121x75 | MILITARY ZONE | Peter & Paul Snowden | Andrew Adkins | 13 | 57.5kg | 96 |
| 9 | 4x3923x560 | JONKER | David Atkins | Robbie Dolan (a) | 2 | 57.5kg | 94 |
| 10 | 732787118x | FUN FACT | Bjorn Baker | Brandon Lerena | 10 | 57.5kg | 82 |
| 11 | 2x1841115x | BEAT LE BON (FR) | Richard Hannon | Pat Dobbs | 15 | 56.5kg | 104 |
| 12 | 217x11x52 | NEVER NO MORE (IRE) | Aidan O’Brien | Pierre-Charles Boudot | 7 | 56.5kg | 103 |
| 13 | 6x1156013x | I AM SUPERMAN (IRE) | Michael O’Callaghan | Leigh Roche | 14 | 56.5kg | 95 |
| 14 | x3113x5310 | SUNLIGHT | Tony & Calvin McEvoy | Luke Currie | 16 | 55.5kg | 116 |
| 15 | 113111×10 | ARCADIA QUEEN | Chris Waller | James McDonald | 5 | 55.5kg | 110 |
| 16 | 31446×1113 | MIZZY | Anthony Cummings | Jason Collett | 6 | 55.5kg | 110 |
| 17 | 111×22 | FASIKA | Joseph Pride | Ms Rachel King | 11 | 55.5kg | 104 |
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