Beaten Stradbroke Handicap favourite Azkadellia is still in contention to run in the Group 1 $500,000 Sky Racing Tattersall’s Club Tiara (1400m) at Eagle Farm on June 25.
Azkadellia is still in contention for the Tattersall’s Club Tiara at Eagle Farm. Photo by Ultimate Racing Photos.
A gallop next Tuesday morning will determine if trainer Ciaron Maher gives the go ahead for Azkadellia to take on the fillies and mares in the last Group 1 race of the 2015 – 2016 racing season.
“I’ll probably head up there this weekend (looking) towards Tuesday and have a look at her gallop and if she’s fine we’ll head towards the Tiara,” Maher said.
Maher said that Azkadellia had pulled up well after finishing ten and three quarter lengths tenth to Under The Louvre in the Group 1 $1.5m AAMI Stradbroke Handicap (1400m) at Eagle Farm last Saturday.
“She’s come through the race really well, she just ended up on the inferior part of the track,” Maher said.
“She pulled up well on the day and has had a couple of easy days at the beach and she seems nice and bright.
Last Saturday saw the re-opening of the Eagle Farm track following a complete reconstruction of the racing surface and it appeared that the inside section of the track wasn’t the place to be late in the day.
Unfortunately from barrier five in the eighteen horse field Damien Oliver was stuck on the fence on Azkadellia and she faltered badly in the straight when it was clear the outside horses had a distinct advantage.
“If you look at the two races before her and the race after I don’t think they went anywhere near about 10m off the rail, so it was pretty clear it was inferior ground,” Maher said.
“I think you just have to forget the run and Malaguerra finished back there where Azkadellia did and he was a horse I thought would be hard to beat but he was just on the wrong part of the track as well.”
“Prior to the race we wanted to be on the outside and clearly we weren’t but I know it doesn’t always go to plan and it is what it is.”
“Maybe (Damien) thought he could cut the corner and get to the outside but anyway it didn’t work out.”
Azkadellia had been at the top of the Stradbroke Handicap market order after a very successful Sydney Autumn Carnival that saw her come away with a Group 1 victory in the $1m The Coolmore Legacy Stakes (Queen Of The Turf Stakes) (1600m) at Randwick on the second day of ‘The Championships’ on April 9.
The four year old mare was sent out as the $4 favourite for the Stradbroke Handicap after she flashed home for second to Music Magnate in the Group 1 $750,000 James Boag’s Premium Doomben 10000 (1350m) at Doomben on May 28.
