A wide barrier and the possibility of a rain affected track won’t affect the chances of unbeaten colt Graff in the Group 2 $200,000 The Run To The Rose (1200m) at Rosehill on Saturday.
Graff, above, will jump from the outside gate in the 2018 The Run To The Rose at Rosehill. Photo by Steve Hart.
Graff will jump from the outside gate in the twelve horse The Run To The Rose field and trainer Kris Lees said that he is not concerned with the wide draw and he added that he is not worried that the Rosehill track has been rated a soft 6 on race eve with more rain forecast.
“Obviously the barrier is not ideal but I’m not worried about it,” Lees told Racing New South Wales News Desk.
“I might scratch a maiden horse from a poor draw but otherwise I don’t get worked up about it.
“Even if Graff is three deep with cover, he will get his chance.
“Rain is forecast and that won’t worry Graff at all. I can’t fault the horse, he has trained on really well since the San Domenico.”
Graff kept his unbeaten record intact and made it three wins from three starts with his dominant victory in the Group 3 $150,000 Singapore Airlines San Domenico Stakes (1100m) at Rosehill on August 25 with Saturday’s jockey Jason Collett in the saddle.
Graff is the short priced $2.60 favourite for The Run To The Rose at Ladbrokes.com.au and is also the $4.50 top pick for the Group 1 $1m De Bortoli Wines Golden Rose Stakes (1400m) and another win this weekend will see the Star Witness colt cement his spot at the top of the market order for the Spring Carnival Group 1 race for the three year olds at Rosehill in a fortnight.
The Chris Waller trained pair of Zousain ($4.20) and Performer ($7.50) are the only other runners under the $10 mark and are also heading towards the Golden Rose Stakes.
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