Trainer Chris Waller has scratched Foxplay from the Group 2 $200,000 Theo Marks Stakes (1300m) at Rosehill on Saturday to be save for a suitable race at Randwick the next week.

Foxplay, above, has been scratched from the Theo Marks Stakes at Rosehill. Photo by Steve Hart.

Foxplay, above, has been scratched from the Theo Marks Stakes at Rosehill. Photo by Steve Hart.

Waller was concerned that another hard run for Foxplay with 59kg top weight in the Theo Marks Stakes could be detrimental to her Spring Carnival campaign and will now run her next Saturday at Randwick in either the weight for age Group 1 $500,000 Colgate Optic White Stakes (George Main Stakes) (1600m) or in the Group 3 $150,000 Bill Ritchie Handicap (1400m).

“Big weight for a mare to be carrying against these type of horses,” Waller said.

“Save her for next Saturday for the weight for age George Main or the Bill Richie.”

“The (Theo Marks) is a lovely race but I just don’t want to flatten her.”

“She took a good week to get over her first up run against Winx, her work since has been very good and I don’t want to flatten her again giving some handy horses three and four kilos in weight.”

Waller elected to give Foxplay an easy barrier trial to keep her fitness levels up and the four year old Foxwedge mare ran home strongly at the end of her 1200m trial at Warwick Farm today to finish fourth, two lengths behind the winner Shalmaneser.

Foxplay has had one run back since winning the Group 1 $1m Coolmore Legacy Queen Of The Turf Stakes (1600m) at Randwick on April 8 and almost caused the upset of the Spring Carnival when Kerrin McEvoy shot her to the front in the straight before being collared by her glamour stablemate Winx in the shadows of the post to be beaten a head in the Group 2 $250,000 Warwick Stakes (1400m) at Randwick on August 19.

Waller will still have two runners in the Theo Marks Stakes with McEvoy riding dual Oaks winner Egg Tart who drew barrier four and Good Prospect will jump from gate six with Hugh Bowman in the saddle.

Egg Tart is resuming for the Spring Carnival after showing her toughness during the Autumn and Winter Carnival with five wins on the trot which included victories in the Group 1 $400,000 Schweppes Oaks (registered as Australasian Oaks) (2000m) at Morphettville in May and in the Group 1 $500,000 Treasury Brisbane Queensland Oaks (2200m) at Doomben in early June.

Theo Marks Stakes betting at Ladbrokes.com.au has Egg Tart as the $2.60 favourite ahead of the Gerald Ryan trained Deploy at $4 and Lindsay Park’s Cannyescent at $5 while Good Prospect is at the double figure odds of $14.

Good Prospect is also resuming, not having raced since finishing fifth to Impending in the Group 1 $1.5m Stradbroke Handicap (1350m) at Doomben during the 2017 Brisbane Winter Carnival.

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.