French import Gailo Chop is a chance to back up this week and is among the nominations for the Group 1 $1.5m Kia Tancred Stakes (2400m) at Rosehill on Saturday.

Gailo Chop, above, is a good chance to back up in the Tancred Stakes at Rosehill. Photo by Steve Hart.

Gailo Chop, above, is a good chance to back up in the Tancred Stakes at Rosehill. Photo by Steve Hart.

Gailo Chop continued his good Autumn form with a runaway three lengths win in the Group 1 $700,000 Ranvet Stakes (2000m) at Rosehill last Saturday and trainer Darren Weir is considering sending the multiple Group 1 winner around again this weekend.

Weir said that Gailo Chop had pulled up in great order after claiming his third Group 1 win and the leading Victorian trainer will monitor the seven year old during the week before confirming a start in the weight for age Tancred Stakes.

“He has pulled up well again this morning and he is just in a terrific spot. He is a really really good horse,” Weir told RSN’s Correct Weight.

“We will see how he does this week. We are going to enter him in The BMW (Tancred Stakes) this week and see whether we back him up other than that he will go to the Queen Elizabeth Stakes.”

Weir has Gailo Chop in peak racing condition and can’t fault him in any way.

“With that horse he is in such a good spot. He is so happy within himself, he is so fit and to go with that he is so sound. And when you have good ability like him and all those things are in line, they inevitably go to the races and run like he is,” Weir said.

“It is very hard to get a horse in the spot that he is in. It is very hard to get everything spot on for a horse.”

“Normally they have niggling problems or something that you are not happy with.”

Gailo Chop only had one blemish leading up to the Ranvet Stakes when second as the $2.60 favourite to Harlem in the Group 1 $1.5m Australian Cup (2000m) at Flemington on March 10.

At his two previous Autumn Carnival starts Gailo Chop was s two times winner at Caulfield in the Group 3 $150,000 Ladbrokes TS Carlyon Cup (1600m) at Caulfield and in the Group 2 $200,000 Carlton Draught Peter Young Stakes (1800m).

Nomiations for the Tancred Stakes have been extended until 11am on Tuesday March 27 after only twelve horses were among the original entries.

Included in the nominations is the Ranvet Stakes runner up Single Gaze, the Chris Waller trained Libran and Who Shot Thebarman and Almandin and The Taj Mahal from Lloyd Williams’ Macedon Lodge.

The final field for the 2018 Tancred Stakes will be released on Wednesday, March 28 while early betting at Ladbrokes.com.au has Gailo Chop as the $2.30 favourite ahead of Almandin at $3.50, Single Gaze at $8 and The Taj Mahal at $9.

Betting for the Tancred Stakes at Ladbrokes.com.au: $2.30 Gailo Chop, $3.50 Almandin, $8 Single Gaze, $9 The Taj Mahal, $12 Auvray, $13 Ambitious, $15 Libran, $26 Harlem, Ventura Storm, Who Shot Thebarman, $$61 Singing, $101 Lasqueti Spirit.

Nominations for 2018 Tancred Stakes (2400m)

# Last 10 Horse Sex Age Trainer Hcp Rating
1 1x21402x24 ALMANDIN (GER) G 8 Liam Howley 113
2 x24x45x0x9 AMBITIOUS (JPN) H 6 Anthony Freedman 110
3 412127×561 AUVRAY (FR) G 7 Richard Freedman 107
4 43150×1121 GAILO CHOP (FR) G 7 Darren Weir 116
5 15867×2816 HARLEM (GB) G 6 David & B Hayes & T Dabernig 109
6 7530x00x78 LASQUETI SPIRIT M 4 Lee Curtis 99
7 x616528x42 LIBRAN (IRE) G 7 Chris Waller 107
8 0x56111034 SINGING (FR) H 8 Kris Lees 102
9 54420×2252 SINGLE GAZE M 5 Nick Olive 109
10 46925041×8 THE TAJ MAHAL (IRE) H 4 Liam Howley 106
11 x76200x437 VENTURA STORM (IRE) G 5 David & B Hayes & T Dabernig 106
12 2x94491x67 WHO SHOT THEBARMAN (NZ) G 9 Chris Waller 109

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.