Forster tipping Cylinder Beach to win Queensland Derby

An excited Desleigh Forster said the Cylinder Beach would be winning the Queensland Derby after he beat stablemate Too Good To Refuse in the Group 3 $125,000 ANTEC Gunsynd Classic (1630m) at Doomben last Saturday.

Cylinder Beach will now head to the Queensland Derby after winning the Gunsynd Classic, above, at Doomben. Photo by Daniel Costello.

Cylinder Beach will now head to the Queensland Derby after winning the Gunsynd Classic, above, at Doomben. Photo by Daniel Costello.

The Eagle Farm trainer’s other Gunsynd Classic runner I’m Belucci, who finished thirteen, will also head to the Group 1 $600,000 Channel Seven Queensland Derby (2400m) at Eagle Farm on June 11, but Cylinder Beach is the stable pick.

“They can bring whatever they like from down south, but they won’t beat Cylinder Beach in the Derby,” Forster said.

“He’s a good horse. All jokes aside, he probably should have won a Group 1 race last winter.”

“I feel like I’m the luckiest person in the world to have these horses at the moment.”

“Cylinder Beach and I’m Belucci will go on to the Queensland Derby and both will probably start next in the Rough Habit Plate at 2000 metres in a fortnight.”

“But I think a staying trip is too far for Too Good To Refuse and I would like to get him into the Stradbroke Handicap at 1400 metres.”

The Group 3 $125,000 Mitty’s Rough Habit Plate (2000m) is run at Doomben on May 14 and is the traditional lead up for the three year olds heading towards the Queensland Derby.

Saturday’s win was Cylinder Beach’s second from seven starts and Forster had initially planned to head to Sydney during the Autumn for the Group 1 $2m BMW Australian Derby (2400m) at Randwick after the three year old won his maiden at Doomben in November by seven lengths over a similar trip as the Gunsynd Classic.

“I could have probably patched him up and taken him to Sydney (for an ATC Derby campaign) but I decided to wait and give him every chance to win a big one here in his home town,” Forster said.

“He had a few setbacks and we decided to wait for the winter.”

Cylinder Beach was having his first run back after his Doomben Maiden win and Forster was able to produce a top class training effort to pull off a first up win with the Showcasing gelding over the mile.

Forster has already tested Cylinder at Group 1 level and said that he was an unlucky fourth to Press Statement in the $600,000 BMW Australia J.J. Atkins (1600m) at Doomben during last year’s Brisbane Winter Carnival.

“Swap the barriers and we might have had a shot. But he was immature and I knew we had a real horse,” Forster said.

From his two wins from seven starts, Cylinder Beach has collected almost $160,000 in prizemoney for his connections.

About The Author

Mark Mazzaglia

Mark is a passionate journalist with a life-time involvement in the racing industry. He spent many years as an analyst and form expert at the Courier Mail and also has hands-on experience working with some of Queensland’s top trainers.