Trainer Gerald Ryan is confident that Perignon will relish the step-up to 1400 metres when she contests the 2015 Tea Rose Stakes at Royal Randwick on Saturday.
Fireworks is one of two Gerald Ryan-trained fillies in the 2015 Tea Rose Stakes. Photo by: Steve Hart
Perignon has raced exclusively over 1200 metres since she made he racing debut with a fourth place finish in the Wyong Magic Millions Classic over 1100 meters in December of last year, but Ryan said that he has always been confident the Snitzel filly will relish the step-up to 1400 metres.
The three-year-old started her spring campaign with a second place finish behind Speak Fondly in the Group 2 Furious Stakes (1200m) at Royal Randwick on September 5 and Ryan told Racing Ahead that he expects the promising filly to produce an even better performance in the Tea Rose Stakes.
“I think that Perignon will love it.
“She has always give me the impression right from when she started racing that she would appreciate 1400 to 1600 metres.
“Until you run it you don’t know, but she gives every indication that she will and she has come on big time since her first-up second.”
Perignon is joined in the 2015 Tea Rose Stakes field by stablemate Fireworks, who stamped herself as a filly to watch when she took out the Group 3 Widden Stakes (1100m) and was placed in the Group 2 Reisling Stakes (1200m) during the 2015 Spring Racing Carnival.
Fireworks beat home just one runner in the Group 2 Silver Shadow Stakes (1200m) at Royal Randwick on August 22 before she produced another flat performance in the Furious Stakes and Ryan admits that the filly needs to step-up in the Tea Rose Stakes to show that she is worthy of heading towards races like the Group 1 Flight Stakes (1600m) at Royal Randwick on October 3 and the Group 1 Thousand Guineas (1600m) at the same venue a week later.
“It is a crossroads for Fireworks as to where we are heading, whether we keep going to the Flight and the Thousand Guineas or whether we drop her back in ground,” Ryan said.
The 2015 Tea Rose Stakes field was released this morning and the Ryan-trained duo are set to take on Ottoman, Lake Geneva, Look To The Stars, Flamboyant Lass, Honesta, Sempre Libera, In Her Time, Ocean Tempest, Pearls, Sofia Rosa and Meteora Miss in the Group 2 event.
Ryan is chasing his first win in the Tea Rose Stakes after finishing second with Melito in the 2009 edition of the race that was won by star mare More Joyous.
