Veteran trainer Gerald Ryan has won the Tattersall’s Tiara on three occasions and he believes that Angel Of Mercy is good enough to give him a fourth win in the Group 1 event at Eagle Farm this weekend.
Angel Of Mercy returned to winning form in the 2014 Lord Mayor's Cup at Doomben on May 24. Photo by: Daniel Costello
Ryan won the Tattersall’s Tiara when it was known as the Winter Stakes with Blushing Bijou in 1992 and won the 2003 edition on the race with Mon Mekki.
The Tattersall’s Tiara became a Group 1 in 2007 and Ryan picked up his first win in the race since it was upgraded to the highest level of racing when Melito defeated Wealth Princess and Beaded in 2010.
Ryan has Angel Of Mercy in the 2014 Tattersall’s Tiara and the Hussonet mare is taking winning form into the $500,000 race after scoring an impressive victory in the Group 3 Lord Mayor’s Cup (1615m) at Doomben on May 24.
Angel Of Mercy has since been sold to Japanese interests for $575,000 at the 2014 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale and Ryan told Racing Ahead that she had taken plenty of benefit from her month away from the races and had impressed in trackwork heading into the Tattersall’s Tiara.
“It was always the plan, even if we didn’t sell her, to give her a month between runs for this and we have done it and she seems very well,” Ryan said.
“She has freshened up really good and she has spent much of the last month down at the beach.
“She did work very sharp on Tuesday morning here and Tim Bell reckons it is the best she felt in any of her gallops this time in.
“She was strong and really towed him to the line and she was really happy with her.
“The mare gets looks terrific and it is probably the best I have ever seen her look in her life.
“It would be great to be able to win first-up for the new owners.”
Angel Of Mercy worked home strongly from the tail of the field when she took out the Lord Mayor’s Cup at her last start and Ryan expects that jockey Tim Bell will be able to find a nice position for the five-year-old when she jumps from barrier nine in the Tattersall’s Tiara.
Steps In Time is expected to take up the running in the Tattersall’s Tiara and Ryan hopes she sets a generous tempo, but said that he does not want the Coolmore Classic getting too far out in front of the rest of the field.
“I would like them to go along at not breakneck speed, but for it to be a nice genuinely run race,” Ryan said.
“If they go too fast up front it gets the others back in the field out of their comfort zone and they don’t quiet seem to finish off, but I wouldn’t want to see them walk like they did in the Stradbroke.
“There looks to be enough pace on here and it will be a genuinely run race, but I don’t think that they will go flat out.”
Angel of Mercy is currently available at 2014 Tattersall’s Tiara odds of $31; with Red Tracer ($4.80) and Cosmic Endeavour ($4.80) still battling for favouritism from Catkins ($5.50) and Steps In Time ($6).
