Clarry Conners’ unbeaten filly Assail rocketed into Magic Millions contention with a blistering win in the $200,000 Wyong Magic Millions 2yo Classic (1100m) at Wyong today.
A last minute decision by Conners to run Assail after the filly drew the outside barrier paid dividends and the Charge Forward two year old will now go to the Gold Coast as one of the top fancies for the $2m Jeep Magic Millions 2yo Classic (1200m) on January 12.
“I was thinking of not running, but Peter said run and she will still win,” Conners said.
The top trainer of two years old said that Assail is better than his 2006 Magic Millions winner Mirror Mirror and if she gets through the Gold Coast run okay would be set for a Golden Slipper campaign.
Conners has won the Group 1 $3.5m Golden Slipper (1200m) at Rosehill on four occasions with Bell Du Jour, Prowl, Burst and Tierce and thinks this filly has the ability to be tested in the toughest two year old race in the world.
“She’s raw this filly, honestly. She had two trials and now she’s had two starts. She hasn’t done much at all,” Conners said.
“I think one of the journalist asked the other day compare her to Mirror Mirror who’s won the Magic Millions, and she’s a better horse than Mirror Mirror.”
“She’ll go to the Gold Coast and the Golden Slipper could be done.”
“Belle Du Jour run second in the Millions and came out and won the Golden Slipper.”
Winning jockey Peter Robl overcame the outside barrier in the first one hundred metres when he followed Always Tomorrow, who had drawn inside him, across the face of the field and raced outside the leader until just before the home turn when he let Assail slide and then maintained a winning break from there.
Robl will start a careless riding suspension after Saturday’s Warwick Farm meeting but will back in time to ride Assail at the Magic Millions Carnival in January.
“She’s a very exciting filly. She’s done it both ends today, she’s run good time doing it and she’ll improve off the run,” Robl said.
“I’ll be back from suspension the week before the Gold Coast so we’re really looking forward to that and she’ll go up there and I reckon she’ll put paid to them up there as well.”
