Handicap in favour of Amexed, says Gollan
PUNTERS and bookmakers seem to be able to find many reasons why Queenslander Amexed can’t run well in the Metropolitan Handicap today but his trainer can find a few to say he can.
Only one horse is at a longer price than Amexed ($51) in the Group 1 staying test over 2400m at Randwick but Brisbane trainer Tony Gollan hopes those who frame the market have it wrong.
Amexed ran an even race when fifth in the Newcastle Cup (2200m) won by Sacred Master who is one of the leading Metropolitan contenders today.
“Obviously this is a different class but it is a handicap and he’s weighted accordingly and it’s a race that can throw up a surprise result,” Gollan said.
“He loves a big track. He’s a nice New Zealand-bred horse with a stout pedigree so I’m hoping he can go well.
“I know he’s a 50-1 chance but anything can happen in a handicap.”
As a three-year-old, Amexed won the Rough Habit Plate ( 2000m) at Doomben and ran fifth in the 2014 Queensland Derby ( 2400m) won by Sonntag.
The premier Brisbane trainer is in the process of establishing a stable at Rosehill where he has 20 boxes.
“At the moment there’s only three horses there including one trained by Glenn Thompson who is going to run things in Sydney,” Gollan said.
“I will come down every week and we will sort out which horses will be in Sydney and which ones stay in Brisbane.
“We can transfer them back and forth if they don’t measure up in Sydney but we have a lot of BOBS bonus horses which of course the owners want to run in NSW.”