A rejuvenated Raceway will be on show when the Gai Waterhouse trained three year old steps out in the $85,000 Spotless Sprint (1100m) at Rosehill tomorrow.
Raceway will be taking on the older horses in the BenchMark 84 handicap at his first run back after being gelded and stable foreman Mark Newnham is expecting to see a more contented racehorse.
“He seems a lot happier horse, he seems very genuine and his trials and work have been terrific,” Newnham said.
“As a lot of colts do he lost his way a little bit. Hopefully it has been the turning point in his career that he needed.”
“He’s always had the natural ability, he just needed to apply himself.”
Raceway won his first two career starts in the early two year old season and was touted as a genuine Golden Slipper chance before finishing a creditable fifth to glamour stablemate Pierro in the Group 1 $3.5m AAMI Golden Slipper (1200m) at Rosehill on April 7.
The More Than Ready youngster then finished off the Autumn chasing Pierro home with a fourth in the Group 1 $500,000 Inglis Sires Produce Stakes (1400m) on April 14 and a ninth of nine in the Group 1 $400,000 Moet & Chandon Champagne Stakes (1600m) on April 28 at Randwick.
Raceway failed to flatter in the Spring and was sent back to the spelling paddock after finishing fifth to Ichihara in the Listed $100,000 Schweppes Heritage Stakes (1100m) at Randwick on September 22.
Newnham is not concerned with the prospect of a rain affected track and is expecting Raceway to handle the conditions and be ready to compete in the feature three year old races in the upcoming Autumn Carnival.
“He’s there to try and win and get himself back on track and then step back into three year old stakes grade,” Newnham said.
“He’s a More Than Ready, they generally handle the wet, and at this time of year tracks won’t be a bog.”
Raceway has won two Randwick barrier trials in preparation for his return and will have to be at the top of his game taking on smart Queensland three year old Better Than Ready.
Trainer Kelly Schweida brought Better Than Ready to Sydney last October and the colt set a new Randwick 1200m track record of 1.08.19 in winning the Listed $100,000 Brian Crowley Stakes.
Better Than Ready goes into tomorrow’s race with only one barrier trial under his belt and Schweida is keen to get the three year old’s Autumn program under way after missing a run last Monday when the Doomben meeting was washed out.
“He’s done as much work as he can without killing him, but he’s still a bit soft going into his first-up run,” Schweida said.
“It’s not ideal to miss the run last week, and if we miss out again on Saturday we will be starting to get a bit desperate.”
“I’m a bit worried the 59kg might take something out of his sectionals.”
