Shoot Out A Chance To Join Exclusive Club In George Main Stakes

Shoot Out has the opportunity to become the first horse since the great Kingston Town to win the Group 1 George Main Stakes (1600m) in back-to-back years when he contests the race on Saturday.

Shoot Out

Shoot Out has the chance to become just the fifth horse to win the George Main Stakes on multiple occasions. Photo by: Steve Hart

The five-time Group 1 winner will face just eight opponents this weekend and is a strong chance to join Kingston Town, Regal Rhythm, Count Radiant and Shannon as the only horses to have the George Main Stakes on multiple occasions.

Shoot Out resumed with an eleventh place finish in the Group 3 Tramway Stakes (1400m) at Royal Randwick a fortnight ago but had plenty of excuses for the less than stellar performance after missing the start and failing to find clear running in the final straight.

Another past winner of the George Main Stakes that will be backing up from the Tramway Stakes is Sincero who will jump from barrier five with rising jockey Brenton Avdulla on board.

Sincero finished towards the tail of the field in the Tramway Stakes but will have taken a great deal of improvement out of the run, which was his first since he finished ninth in the Group 1 Cox Plate (2040m) during the 2012 Spring Racing Carnival.

Other runners backing up from the Tramway Stakes are Warwick Stakes winner Veyron (barrier nine), Lloyd Williams-owned Fawkner (barrier four) and the Chris Waller-trained duo of Royal Descent (barrier three) and Sacred Falls (barrier eight).

Classy four-year-old Hawkspur, who stamped himself as a Caulfield Cup (2400m) contender with his dominant victory in the Group 2 Chelmsford Stakes (1600m), is a chance to contest the George Main Stakes but has also been included in the acceptances for the Group 2 Hill Stakes (2000m).

The Purrealist gelding will likely start as favourite in whichever race he contests and will be ridden by in-form jockey Jim Cassidy who won the Group 1 Golden Rose (1400m) on Chris Waller-trained Zoustar at Rosehill Gardens last Saturday.

The most interesting runner in the George Main Stakes final field is Peter Moody-trained Dissident who finished second in the Golden Rose last weekend.

The Sebring colt has been unlucky not to record a victory this preparation, finishing second in The Rosebud (1200m), The Run To The Rose (1200m) and the Golden Rose, and is aiming to become the first three-year-old to win the George Main Stakes since Viscount was victorious in 2001.

All Too Hard was the only three-year-old to compete in the 2012 edition of the George Main Stakes and finished fourth before going on to win the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m) and finish second in the Cox Plate.

About The Author

Thomas Hackett

Thomas is a passionate and opinionated racing journalist and punter who has been obsessed with horse racing since he backed Saintly to win the 1996 Melbourne Cup. An international racing enthusiast, he has his finger on the pulse of racing news not just from Australia but all around the world.