Gai Waterhouse is hoping her Group 1 winning form continues on Saturday at Rosehill with Diamond Drille in the $600,000 Coolmore Classic (1500m).
Diamiond Drille is expected to show improvement in the Coolmore Classic at Rosehill. Photo by Steve Hart.
Waterhouse trained a two state winning Group 1 double last Saturday with Cosmic Endeavour leading all of the way in the $500,000 Canterbury Stakes (1300m) at Randwick and Wandjina adopted the same front running tactics to take out the $500,000 Australian Guineas (1600m) at Flemington.
Group 1 winning mare Diamond Drille has had two runs back from a spell and Waterhouse is expecting marked improvement this weekend from the five year old following a good trackwork session last Saturday morning for experienced rider Mark Newnham.
“Mark Newnham’s best of the morning was the Group One winning mare Diamond Drille (Al Maher x Damzelle Pedrille) who worked over 1400m coming home her last 200m in 11.2 seconds,” Waterhouse wrote on blog that appears on her website – gaiwaterhouse.com.au.
“This mare will be tough to beat (most likely on Saturday) over 1500m. Stay with her as she always improves into a preparation and this is her time of year to shine.”
Diamond Drille resumed from a break for an eighth to Contributer in the Group 2 $250,000 Optus Apollo Stakes (1400m) at Randwick on February 14 followed by a tenth to Danesiri in the Group 3 $150,000 Guy Walter Stakes (1400m) at Warwick Farm on February 28.
The Al Maher mare will be fitter for those two runs and showed in the Autumn last year that she needs race fitness to come to her peak with a third up win in the Group 3 $150,000 The Irish Echo Aspiration Quality (1600m) at Randwick on March 15.
Then two starts later Diamond Drille went on to win the Group 1 $1m Cellarbrations Queen Of The Turf Stakes (1600m) at Randwick.
Diamond Drille is at long odds for the Coolmore Classic and is marked as a $21 chance with Ladbrokes.com.au.
Last start winner First Seal has been installed the $1.70 favourite following her return to form with a dominant win in the Group 2 $175,000 Surround Stakes (1400m) at Warwick Farm on February 28.
Second pick Dear Demi ($8) is also expected to show improvement following her first up fifth in the Guy Walter Stakes.
The Chris Waller trained Winx is next in the betting at $9 just ahead of Arabian Gold and Mahara at $11.
