Waller Happy With Caulfield Stakes Duo

Chris Waller has Sacred Falls and Foreteller in the 2014 Caulfield Stakes field and he is thrilled with the condition of both horses heading into the Group 1 event at Caulfield tomorrow.

Sacred Falls will have his final run before the Cox Plate in the Caulfield Stakes on Saturday. Photo by: Steve Hart

Sacred Falls will have his final run before the Cox Plate in the Caulfield Stakes on Saturday. Photo by: Steve Hart

Sacred Falls has been one of the best backed horses in Caulfield Stakes betting markets and the O’Reilly entire is into a quote of $4.60 to record a second straight win at the highest level of racing this weekend.

The talented entire started his 2014 Spring Racing Carnival with fair performances in the Group 2 Warwick Stakes (1400m) at Royal Randwick on August 23 and the Group 2 Chelmsford Stakes (1600m) at the same venue on September 6, but he returned to his very best form with an outstanding performance in the Group 1 George Main Stakes (1600m) at Royal Randwick on September 20.

“He showed a great turn-of-foot and he has just come back very well,” Waller told Racing Ahead this morning.

“I think that we have only seen that of him in the last six months; sure he has won some good races prior to that, but he has just shown to me that he has gone to a new level and is a stronger and tougher horse.

“That win last start was on a good track and it showed that he is not just a wet tracker.”

Sacred Falls will be stepping up to 2000 metres for just the third time in his career in the Group 1 Caulfield Stakes (2000m), but has previously performed well in his two starts over the distance; finishing second in the 2013 Group 1 Rosehill Guineas (2000m) and second in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) earlier this year.

Waller said that the performance of Sacred Falls behind It’s A Dundeel in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes was outstanding and he believes that the 2000 metres of the Caulfield Stakes is now the ideal trip for the five-year-old.

“If his last start wasn’t his career best run then the Queen Elizabeth certainly was,” Waller said.

“He came from an impossible position, the tempo was against them and he just flew over the concluding stages.

“I think that it is the perfect trip for him and he just needs to overcome that barrier.

“With a bit of luck he is certainly going to be very hard to beat.”

Sacred Falls isn’t the only Waller-trained horse taking Group 1 winning form into the Caulfield Stakes after Foreteller recorded his first race win for over a year in the Underwood Stakes (1800m) at Caulfield on September 20.

Waller said that Foreteller is one of the most popular horses in his stable and is racing in great form, but believes that the noted backmarker will need a bit of luck to beat the star-studded 2014 Caulfield Stakes field tomorrow.

“He is just a great horse and he is a pleasure to have around the stable,” Waller said.

“He has a good jockey aboard and I will leave it up to him, but when you have backmarkers you are sweating on tempo and a good example was the Underwood Stakes last year when he ran last after winning the Makybe Diva two weeks before.

“It was simple tempo related and he came out three weeks later and ran fourth in the Cox Plate.

“There is going to be an element of luck in this race and hopefully we are in the right sport turning for home.”

Sacred Falls is on the second line of Caulfield Stakes betting markets at a quote of $4.60, while Foreteller is currently available at 2014 Caulfield Stakes odds of $12.

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.