Co-trainer Jamie Richards is pleased with the condition of 2017 Caulfield Cup prospect Gingernuts, but concedes that the horse will require a few runs and distance to find his best form upon resuming this time.

Gingernuts will be set for an appearance in the Group 1 Caulfield Cup this season. Photo: Steve Hart

Gingernuts will be set for an appearance in the Group 1 Caulfield Cup this season. Photo: Steve Hart

Gingernuts was a standout in both his native New Zealand and Australia through autumn this year; posting two Group 1 wins, including a dominant performance and triumph in the Group 1 Rosehill Guineas (2000m) on March 15th.

The Iffraaj gelding is set to return amongst outstanding company in the Tarzino Trophy (1400m) at Hastings on Saturday and Richards believes that he will take plenty of benefit from the run, without causing too many ripples.

“The 1400 metres will be too short for him on Saturday,” Richards told the NZ Racing Desk.

“He’ll get back and be running on at the finish, but it’s not his race against the likes of Kawi, Perfect Fit and Volpe Veloce.

“He will go back to run in the mile and then, all going well, he could go to Melbourne but that will be decided after the Windsor Park.”

Jockey Opie Bosson, who has ridden Gingernuts in each of his three most-recent starts, partnered the four-year-old in a smart piece of work at Matamata on Tuesday morning and was reportedly pleased with everything that the horse produced.

“It was very foggy and he couldn’t be timed, but Opie was happy with him,” Richards added.

“He’s a pretty laid back sort of horse and when Opie (Bosson) gave him a couple of backhanders he finished on strongly and showed he was going the right way.”

Stamping himself as a horse to follow through a short but impressive two-year-old campaign, Gingernuts resumed on New Year’s Eve for a credible fourth in a Stratford minor over 1200m, before failing to fire and tenth in the Michael Stemmer Barrister BM65 (1400m) on January 20th.

Returning to winning form in the Nicholson Autos BM65 (1600m) less than a fortnight later, Gingernuts made a perfect transition to black type company with a smart win in the Group 2 Avondale Guineas (2100m) on February 18th and backed that up with a dominant win in the Group 1 New Zealand Derby (2400m).

Gingernuts was included amongst a list of 142 Caulfield Cup nominations on Tuesday and is currently considered a $17 shot in early Caulfield Cup betting markets at Ladbrokes.com.au.

About The Author

Jared Timms

Jared graduated with a journalism degree in 2011. He is a keen sports fan and has enjoyed many accolades for his lively writing style and comprehensive coverage of major sporting events and horse racing. Today, you can find Jared cheering on his beloved Manchester City with a beer in hand.