No Everest for Alligator Blood

Trainer David Vandyke has confirmed that star 4-year-old Alligator Blood (All Too Hard) will not target The Everest.

The Silver Eagle into the Golden Eagle is the assignment for Alligator Blood, who returned with an eye-catching third at Doomben on Saturday.

“We saw a horse (on Saturday) that will be better placed in the Silver Eagle over the 1300 metres at Randwick, say than The Everest,” Vandyke told Racing.com .

“So The Everest is off the table and we will now concentrate on the Silver and Golden Eagle. From a Golden Eagle perspective, he couldn’t have run any better.

“I think the horse is better suited over further than 1200 metres and I think he’s going to be pretty lethal over the 1500 metres at Rosehill in the Golden Eagle. All our strategy is aimed towards that. "

Elleegant on track for George Main

Chris Waller believes Verry Elleegant (NZ) (Zed {NZ}) is poised to continue her winning ways when she fronts-up in Saturday's G1 George Main S.

Verry Elleegant is coming off an impressive first-up win in the G1 Winx S. and her trainer believes she can make improvement from that run.

“She came through it very well,” Waller told Racenet. “We sent her to Wild Oaks for four nights and she came back in bucking her brands off so to speak."

“I think that was the key to her recovery. Her appetite was better.”

Verry Elleegant galloped between races with Imaging (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}), who was fourth in the Winx S. at Rosehill on Saturday.

“They both got up to top speed the last part and it was just short and sharp. I didn’t want them both having a tough workout, they are pretty forward in condition.

“They didn’t need to have a searching workout and both horses got to their top speed without being put under pressure to be there.”

As well as Imaging and Verry Elleegant, Waller will have Star Of The Seas (NZ) (Savabeel) and Kolding (NZ) (Ocean Park {NZ}) in the race.

Straight suits for Doubtland

Team Hawkes will target a second successive G1 Coolmore Stud S. with star colt Doubtland (Not A Single Doubt) to tackle the Flemington feature after his win in the G2 Danehill S.

Wayne Hawkes told RSN that Doubtland, who is owned by Orbis, would remain in Victoria, and attempt to emulate stablemate Exceedance, who won the race last year.

“There‘s a big, fat tick now that he actually likes the straight. His last 200 metres was bullish, I thought,“ Hawkes said.

“His turn of foot is nothing short of electrifying that horse.

“The Coolmore‘s going to be his race, it’s just a matter of what we do with him now. There's seven weeks to the race. How and where [he goes before then], I don’t know.”

Stablemates North Pacific (Brazen Beau) and Ole Kirk (Written Tycoon), will go to the G1 Golden Rose S. having finished second and third in the G2 Run To The Rose.

Bowman inquiry adjourned

Racing NSW stewards have adjourned an inquiry into Hugh Bowman’s ride aboard Farnan (Not A Single Doubt) in Saturday’s G2 Run To The Rose.

Bowman set a strong speed on Farnan, who faded late to finish fifth in the seven-horse field, 3.8l behind winner Rothfire (Rothesay).

Stewards, who told Bowman they adjourned their inquiry to a date to be fixed and will continue their investigations and consult betting records.

Bowman said he was issued with no specific riding instructions, with the expectation that the colt would either lead or race outside the lead. He elected to ride Farnan forward to lead when Rothfire didn't opt to do so, but Farnan started to race keenly and took charge.

"I dug him to lead. He didn’t settle as well as I would have liked in front,” Bowman said after the race.

“If I had my time again I might not have led. I think the horse performed well under the circumstances.”

Santa's Gilgai path to Everest

Santa Ana Lane (Lope De Vega {Ire}) will resume his spring campaign in the G2 Gilgai S. at Flemington next month and make a last-minute appeal to slotholders to get into The Everest.

Co-trainer Sam Freedman confirmed the 8-year-old would not travel to Sydney to contest the G2 The Shorts, and will look to target The Everest, a race which he was runner-up in last year second-up.

The five-time Group 1 winner would have a two-week break between the Gilgai and The Everest.

Options open for The Chosen One

Co-trainer Murray Baker is weighing his options with The Chosen One (NZ) (Savabeel) after his impressive victory at Flemington on Saturday.

The Chosen One is headed towards the G1 Caulfield Cup and G1 Melbourne Cup, races he contested last year, but how he steps to there is still undecided.

“We’re looking at where we will go next with him (The Chosen One),” he said. “The Underwood S. is an option although I’m not sure whether he is a true weight-for-age horse.

“If it’s not the Underwood then he will probably go to the JRA Cup at Moonee Valley.

“His main aim is the two Cups but he is well down the list in the Caulfield Cup so it will be interesting to see if he can make the field.

“We will have to see what happens but they do tend to drop away with some of those higher rated ones.”

Baker said he was prepared to forgive the effort of Quick Thinker (So You Think {NZ}) in the G1 Makybe Diva S. , where he finished 14th.

“He was disappointing as he was under pressure on the home turn,” he said.

“He probably does need a shower of rain and they didn’t get enough of it on Saturday to help him.

“We’ll see what is around for him but he is qualified for both Cups so we will press on at this stage. "

Positive signs for Derby winner

G1 New Zealand Derby winner Sherwood Forest (Fastnet Rock) will continue with his spring campaign having shown a quick recovery after pulling up lame at Ellerslie on Saturday.

The 4-year-old trialled in the field in the JRA Trophy and underwent a subsequent veterinary examination which found grade 4/5 lameness in his left foreleg.

Trainer Tony Pike had his own vets perform several x-rays on the horse on Sunday morning however he was walking freely and showing no signs of a problem, with the x-rays failing to reveal any explanation for the run.

“We just don’t know what has happened,” Pike said. “Michael (McNab) said he lost his action after a furlong and he tailed off.

“He pulled up extremely lame so we took him home and performed some precautionary x-rays this morning but they have revealed nothing at this stage.

“He’s trotted up one hundred per cent sound so it’s a little bit of a mystery.

“We’ll do some more investigations over the next couple of days but thankfully it doesn’t look life-threatening which is a big positive.”

Travelling Light out of spring

G1 Levin Classic winner Travelling Light (NZ) (El Roca) has been ruled out of the spring.

Travelling Light finished 10th when resuming in the G2 Foxbridge Plate earlier this month and her trainer Ben Foote has not been pleased with her subsequent work.

“The horse looks amazing, but I galloped her yesterday myself with Sam Collett riding Babylon Berlin (stablemate) and I just wasn’t happy,” Foote said.

“I am going to do some further tests with the vet on Monday because I don’t know what is going on.

“We are going to tip her out irrespective of what that reveals. She is a happy horse but there is something not right.”