Battle scared Ranvet Stakes winner Our Ivanhowe is among the nominations for the Group 1 $1.5m The BMW (2400m) at Rosehill on Saturday and is set for a seven day back up.
Ranvet Stakes winner Our Ivanhowe, above, is set to back up in The BMW at Rosehill Photo by Steve Hart.
The Lee and Anthony Freedman trained Our Ivanhowe was very impressive with a first up win on a heavy Rosehill track in the Group 1 $700,000 Ranvet Stakes (2000m) last Saturday but threw a scare through the camp when he returned to scale showing signs of lameness.
But Lee Freedman has since reported that the German import has recovered and will be heading back to Rosehill for The BMW.
“The horse licked the bin out, and he trotted him up and he’s as free as a bird,” Freedman told RSN 927’s Correct Weight on Sunday.
“Clearly he put a foot wrong and jarred himself yesterday, but icing him and treating him overnight and this morning he seems as sound as he’s ever been.”
Our Ivanhowe was having his first run back in The Ranvet Stakes since running seventeenth to Almandin in the Group 1 $6m Emirates Melbourne Cup (3200m) at Flemington during the 2016 Melbourne Spring Carnival and Freedman said that he normally would not back up his horse so close to their first up run.
But the prospect of another wet track at Rosehill on Saturday for the proven mudlark has swayed Freedman to go ahead with a BMW start.
“This is really unchartered territory next week – we’d normally not do this – but we know we went in (Saturday) with a fit horse so it’s not going to hurt him … if they have a wet week in Sydney, he probably won’t have a saddle on him for most of the week, go straight into The BMW, and good luck if they can beat him on Heavy ground again,” Freedman said.
The Australian Turf Club has extended nominations for The BMW until 11am (Sydney time) on Tuesday March 21, 2017 after only receiving fourteen entries which also includes Our Ivanhowe’s stablemate Exospheric.
Exospheric has had two runs back from a spell and is coming off a last start third behind Humidor and Jameka in the Group 1 $1.5m Australian Cup (2000m) at Flemington on March 11.
The three Australian Cup placegetters are set to clash again after the Darren Weir trained Humidor and Ciaron Maher’s Caulfield Cup winner Jameka are also among The BMW nominations.
Sydney’s leading trainer Chris Waller also has a strong representation among The BMW nominations with veteran stayers Grand Marshal and Who Shot Thebarman as well as the English import Libran.
All three had their final BMW lead up run in the Group 3 $350,000 McGrath Estate Agents Sky High Stakes (2000m) at Rosehill on March 11 with Libran doing the best to finish fourth to Tavago with Who Shot Thebarman sixth and Grand Marshal finishing at the tail of the field in ninth spot.
Former Kiwi trainers Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young, now based at Cranbourne in Victoria, are looking for another Sydney Autumn Carnival win in The BMW with Tavago who handled the rain affected track with ease in taking our the Sky High Stakes which was his first win since claiming the Group 1 $2m BMW Australian Derby (2400m) at Randwick almost twelve months ago.
The Lindsay Park Team have nominated Almoonqith and Boom Time for The BMW, James Cummings has entered his Victoria Derby winner Prized Icon, Wayne Walters has Puccini and Lee Curtis has nominated his Crown Oaks winner Lasqueti Spirit.
