Wide barrier hampers Fell Swoop’s Doomben 10,000 chances

A wide barrier and not a wet track concerns Canberra trainer Matt Dale more about the chances of Fell Swoop in the Group 1 $700,000 James Boag’s Premium Doomben 10000 (1200m) at Doomben on Saturday.

Felll Swoop, above, has drawn a wide barrier in the Doomben 10,000 at Doomben. Photo by Daniel Costello.

Felll Swoop, above, has drawn a wide barrier in the Doomben 10,000 at Doomben. Photo by Daniel Costello.

Fell Swoop has drawn barrier fourteen in the fifteen horse Doomben 10,000 field and jockey Damian Browne will need all the luck in the world if he is going to steer the five year old to his first Group 1 victory.

“It’s not ideal and I’ll talk with Damian (Browne) first before we devise a plan,” Dale told Racing Queensland News.

“It definitely doesn’t add to your confidence but it is what it is.

“We’ll just have to play the cards we’ve been dealt.”

“He arrived safe and well at Matt Dunn’s stables at Murwillumbah today and everything is going well except we didn’t envisage a heavy track and now we’ve got a bad draw.”

Dale is not that concerned about the rain affected Doomben track after the five times Group 1 placegetter finished a gallant last start third behind Chautauqua and English on a heavy 8 in the Group 1 $2.5m Darley T J Smith Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on April 1.

“The track shouldn’t be too much of a concern as he ran third on a heavy track in the T J Smith in Sydney last start,” Dale said.

Fell Swoop’s 2017 campaign has been slightly altered compared to last year’s and he didn’t run in the Group 2 $200,000 Victory Stakes (1200m) at Eagle Farm this year, a race he won last year at Doomben in the lead up to the Group 1 $500,000 BTC Cup (1200m) at Doomben which was run two weeks prior to the Doomben 10,000.

“The Victory Stakes was at Eagle Farm this year and we just felt last year’s race took the edge off him for the BTC Cup and 10,000,” Dale said.

The Group 1 sprints during this year’s Brisbane Winter Carnival has been reprogrammed with the Doomben 10,000 coming forward two weeks with its distance being reduced to 1200m from 1350, while the BTC Cup has been renamed to be the Group 1 $700,000 Darley Kingsford Smith Cup and will be run over 1300m at Eagle Farm a fortnight after the Doomben 10,000.

Fell Swoop will run in the Kingsford Smith Cup after the Doomben 10,000 but will not contest the Group 1 $1.5m Stradbroke Handicap (1400m) at Eagle Farm on June 10.

“After the 10,000 he’ll run in the (Group 1) Kingsford Smith Cup at Eagle Farm and then go for a spell,” Dale said.

Fell Swoop is still in contention in the betting for the Doomben 10,000 at Ladbrokes.com.au at $8 behind Peter and Paul Snowden’s three year old Russian Revolution at $3.20, last year’s winner Music Magnate at $6.50 and wet tracker Redzel at $7.

About The Author

Mark Mazzaglia

Mark is a passionate journalist with a life-time involvement in the racing industry. He spent many years as an analyst and form expert at the Courier Mail and also has hands-on experience working with some of Queensland’s top trainers.