Trainer Paul Messara is confident that his top line three year old Scissor Kick will be ready to score a goal by the time he gets to the Group 1 $600,000 Royal Randwick Guineas (1600m) at Randwick on March 7.
Scissor Kick will be ready to score a goal when he gets to the Royal Randwick Guineas at Randwick. Photo by Steve Hart.
Messara has a month to fine tune Scissor Kick who starts his Autumn Carnival campaign in the Group 3 $150,000 Eskimo Prince Stakes (1200m) at Rosehill on Saturday.
While Messara admits the Redoute’s Choice colt is not fully wound up for his assignment this weekend, he expects him to be competitive and take a lot of benefit from the run heading towards the main goal of the Randwick Guineas.
“I expect him to go into this, certainly not peaking, but trying to have him ready to peak in a month’s time for the Group One, the Randwick Guineas. That’s the goal,” Messara told AAP.
“But he’s certainly fit enough and well enough to run very well and capable of winning the race.”
A Group 1 win would greatly enhance the value of the young stallion who races in the Arrowfield Stud colours of black and yellow diamonds and is set to stand at the famous Hunter Valley stud when he retires.
And Messara has no doubt that Scissor Kick has a Group 1 win in him sometime in the future.
“I’ve had some good horses before and he’s as good as any I’ve had,” Messara said.
“When you get a good horse like this, if they can stay sound and healthy, I really think it’s only a matter of time (until he wins a Group One race).”
Scissor Kick is a winner of three races from seven starts but undoubtedly his best performance was when he was a neck second to Hallowed Crown in the Group 1 $1m De Bortoli Wines Golden Rose Stakes (1400m) at Rosehill during the 2014 Sydney Spring Carnival.
While his best win to date was in the Group 3 $125,000 Synergy FX Up and Coming Stakes (1300m) at Randwick prior to the Golden Rose when he beat his stablemate Panzer Division.
Scissor Kick is marked at $4.40 for the Eskimo Prince Stakes with Ladbrokes.com.au in a compact market order that has six of the seven runners under double figures.
Leading trainer Chris Waller will saddle up three runners with Delectation the early favourite at $4, Harrier Jet at $4.80 and Kermedac at $6.50.
The Gerald Ryan trained Inz’N’Out is marked alongside Scissor Kick at $4.40, Diamond Valores is an $8 chance while the David Payne Bold Circle is the outsider of the field at $21.
