Straight talking on hopes in Slipper
Group 1-winning jockey Regan Bayliss has echoed the frustration of punters bewildered at the condition of the Rosehill track for Saturday’s Coolmore Classic meeting.
Despite less than 6mm of rain in the seven days leading up to Saturday’s meeting, the surface was a genuine Soft 6, with jockeys steering well clear of the fence as early as race one.
A total of 15mm of irrigation was applied to the track in the same seven-day period.
Bayliss let his thoughts be known on X after the inside lanes in Sydney were again considered to be the inferior part of the track.
“Rosehill track a soft 6 today with very little rain about with the inside 3 lanes being inferior to middle/out,” Bayliss tweeted.
“The last 4 Saturdays in Sydney, the tracks have been under standard and not world class which we market our carnivals to be.
“Disappointing #letmothernature doherthing.”
He joined a handful of social media pundits who voiced similar same concerns when the Soft 6 rating was posted on race morning.
Jockey Tim Clark has a better understanding than most about this year’s Golden Slipper contenders and he’s adamant Straight Charge has the necessary tools to be fighting out the finish on Saturday at Rosehill Gardens.
Clark has ridden three of the top four horses in TAB Golden Slipper betting for this $5m two-year-old feature, having played a part in the preparation of several Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott chances.
Waterhouse and Bott could have seven runners in the Slipper and Clark rode hot favourite Storm Boy ($2.30) in his debut win as well as partnering Straight Charge ($9), Lady Of Camelot ($13) and Prost ($34) at times this preparation. He also rode the Tony and Calvin McEvoy-trained Dublin Down ($34) to victory in last Saturday’s Group 3 Pago Pago Stakes (1200m).
Hong Kong-based jockey Hugh Bowman will take over the ride on Dublin Down in the Slipper, with Clark already locked in to ride Straight Charge for Tulloch Lodge.
Clark believes Straight Charge deserves to be considered among the main chances.
“He has got a great natural speed and a really good cruising speed,” Clark said.
“He can run at a good speed but use little energy and then he has the ability to quicken off that.
“Obviously the Slipper is a high-pressure race so it’s whether he is going to get that easier time but he is pretty tough and he will be thereabouts fighting out the finish.
“He is very talented and deserves to be right in the mix.”
Clark has ridden Straight Charge in three of his four starts.
On course, a number of trainers and jockeys also bemoaned the fact that some horses were unable to quicken in the ground.
The track remained a Soft 6 throughout the 10-race card despite high winds and no rain throughout the day.
“You would have to wonder about the transparency and accuracy of the irrigation given out on Sydney tracks,” Peter Lawrence tweeted.
“It’s just not possible only 15mls of irrigation was applied all week, 6ml of rain on Thursday and track a genuine SLOW at Rosehill.
“It just doesn’t add up.”