Duel Group 1 winner Sincero is set to defend his crown in the Group 1 Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on August 31, as he begins his Spring Racing Carnival campaign that will be limited to runs at the highest level of racing.
Sincero has been set for the Group 1 Cox Plate (2040m) the last two years but after back-to-back ninth place finishes trainer Stephen Farley has made the decision to step Sincero back in distance and contest a number of Group 1 races over a mile in the upcoming season.
After resuming in the recently upgraded Memsie Stakes, Sincero will travel to Sydney for the George Main Stakes (1600m) at Randwick on September 21, return to Melbourne for the Emirates Stakes (1600m) at the end of the Melbourne Cup Carnival before heading to Perth for the Railway Stakes (1600m) in November.
Sincero missed the 2013 Autumn Racing Carnival after suffering a strained sesamoid and Farley said he had been extremely conservative as he nursed the rising six-year-old back to full health.
“While it was only a slight strain there was no need to rush a horse like him back,” Farley told Racing Victoria.
“I had three different vets look at him and they gave me three different recovery times and I went with the longest one which was five months off.
“At this stage everything is fine and if everything continues to go well he’ll have his first trial at Rosehill on August 5.”
Sincero’s racing history indicates that Farley’s decision to bypass the Cox Plate to concentrate on other Group 1 races is the correct choice.
The Umatilla gelding has raced at distances longer than 1600 metres on six occasions for only a single placing but has recorded eight wins from twelve starts, including two Group 1 victories, between 1400 metres and a mile.