Trainer David Hayes is looking to cement a spot in the Caulfield Cup with Spillway if he can win the Group 1 $400,000 Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) at Flemington on Saturday.
Spillway, red and blue, failed narrowly to pick up Star Rolling, orange and white, when second in the P.B. Lawrence Stakes. Photo by Race Horse Photos Australia.
Hayes, who trains in partnership with his nephew Tom Dabernig, was more than pleased with the first up effort of Spillway after a close up second to Star Rolling in the Group 2 $200,000 Back To Caulfield P.B. Lawrence Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on August 16 and he expects him to race well again.
“I think he’ll run terrific,” Hayes told AAP.
“We’re hoping he wins and gets 100 per cent qualified for the (Caulfield) Cup. That would be great.”
A win in the Makybe Diva Stakes will exempt Spillway from the ballot for the Group 1 $2.5m Crown Golden Ale Caulfield Cup (2400m) at Caulfield on October 18, the race Hayes is aiming the English import towards.
Hayes has already found the secret to the English stayer and collected the first place prizemoney when he won the Group 3 $150,000 Japan Racing Association Plate (2000m) at Randwick during this year’s Sydney Autumn Carnival.
Spillway has won up 2200m in England but has been placed over 2400m when third in the Group 3 £75,000 Neptune Investment Management Gordon Stakes (2400m) at Goodwood on July 31, 2013.
Damien Oliver will again be aboard after partnering Spillway in the P.B. Lawrence Stakes and is certain to give the five year old a cosy run from barrier eight in the eleven horse field.
The Peter Moody trained Dissident will be hard to beat again after a dominant first up victory in the Group 1 $400,000 New Zealand Bloodstock Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on August 30 and will have the services again of Ben Melham from barrier six.
Last season’s Melbourne premiership winning trainer Darren Weir expects his stable favourite Puissance De Lune to peak for the Makybe Diva Stakes at his third run back from a spell and can see him figuring strongly in the finish.
The French import was beaten two and a half lengths when a first up sixth as favourite to Star Rolling in the P.B. Lawrence Stakes and then ran a solid race when third to Dissident in the Memsie Stakes.
Spillway was allocated 52kgs when Caulfield Cup weights were released last week and the import is rated one of the top fancies with Ladbrokes.com.au who have him marked a $17 alongside of Japanese stayer Bande and Australian Oaks winner Rising Romance.
Group 1 Vinery Stud Stakes winner Lucia Valentina was promoted to the top of the Caulfield Cup market order after winning the Group 2 $175,000 Tattersalls Club Tramway Stakes (1400m) at Randwick last Saturday’s and now shares favouritism with Sydney Cup winner The Offer at $15.
