ROB'S SHOUT - THE LAST THROW OF THE GROUP 1 DICE FOR THE SPRING CARNIVAL AT FLEMINGTON

By Robert Heathcote | Thursday, November 3, 2011

Robert Heathcote is the leading racehorse trainer in Brisbane. 'Rob's Shout' - the personal blog of the multi-premiership winning trainer will appear every Thursday on HRO.

Hello again folks, yes, this Saturday is indeed the last throw of the Group 1 dice for the Spring Carnival at Flemington.

Our stable has two runners with Woorim taking on a crack field in the Emirates Stakes mile race and Buffering competing against the superstar Black Caviar in the Patinack 1200 up the famous straight six!

That's two runners so I guess it equals two chances, but of course the reality of it is that Black Caviar will only ever be beaten in this country through an injury, an illness or some unforeseen circumstance.

She is simply the best sprinter this country has seen!

It's no secret that the plan has always been to race here against her with Buffering and simply go for the second prize money … and why not? It’s $180 grand and there's only a field of seven!

It’s funny eh, the prize money goes down to eighth place and there are only the seven runners. That’s probably a shame but Black Caviar is a pretty scary opponent. We will be delighted to run second to her!

Moods has probably padded the field a bit with the four runners but, again, for this kind of prize money on offer, why not?

Buffering raced below his best at his last run at Caulfield. We have since decided to give him the three weeks to this run and I have been very happy with how he has progressed since then.

We found he needed chiropractic manipulation after his Caulfield run and his work since has been good. Buffering has always done best when he is a touch on the fresh side so the three weeks will have him rearing to go.

I have also decided to put the blinkers back on him. He's only had the one run with the blinkers on before. That was when he won the Group 3 McEwan Stakes at Moonee Valley.

Nash Rawiller takes over from Damian on top, but Brownie will get back on him when he races back at home. Nash has had the one ride on him for a Group 2 win at Randwick in the Roman Consul!

The reports from my vet and more importantly, from my travelling foreperson Melissa, have all been positive so we are confident that Buffering can bounce back to his best and run a very good race!

I envisage Nash taking Buffering straight to the lead with the shades on so he will have to break well from the gates. If he is back to his best, he can win his race … which for me is second … .well, you know what I mean!

"WOORIM … and here comes Woorim.” Now that was music to my ears when the race broadcaster said that in last week's Tab.com Group 3 race!

It was very satisfying to see the son of Show A Heart bounce back to his best form and put some pretty decent horses to the sword.

Yes, Woorim does have his share of soundness issues at times and he is very particular about which track surface he prefers, but when the stars line up, he is certainly a formidable galloper.

Michael Rodd did a super job on him in Damian's absence and he will stay on him for the race this Saturday after his flawless ride last week. Damian had the option of going down and I can certainly understand his decision to stay back in Brisbane where he rode a very smart one to victory.

Like Buffering, Damian will take over the reins when Woorim comes back home!

Can Woorim successfully back up in the last big one for the carnival?

We think he can as he has done it in the past with winning results. It's all about the horses confidence to stretch out and Mel reports that he is bucking his brand off so we are confident that he will again race well.

Sure, he has never won over the mile and this is certainly a true genuine Group 1 field with a host of Group 1 winners lining up. Jimmy Choux, how brave was he in the Cox plate? Then there’s Secret Admirer. Well, I have always admired her so Woorim will certainly have to be at his best, but he has done extremely well through the week and the stars look like lining up for him!

My fingers are crossed.

I elected not to go down to Flemington last weekend and in hindsight I am glad I didn't as I always fly Qantas and I am glad I wasn't involved in the shit fight trying to get back home, but I will certainly be there for the Group 1 double-header this Saturday.

It was immensely satisfying for me personally to receive so many well wishes and congratulations from so many at Doomben after Woorim’s race win. It made me happy to be a Queenslander … well a pseudo one anyway as I am a proud Tasmanian … with both heads!

How good has it been to see so many of our 'local' horses doing so well during the carnival with another win for 'BIG' Jason McLachlan with Facile Tigre!

Top stuff Jason and he must have been immensely proud to do it with a horse he brought and trained with his dad!

We had a couple of runners from the stable on Melbourne Cup day where things didn't entirely go to plan. Our Lukas has some soreness so he's on a float home and Gundy Son may not have settled into the Flemington environment as well as we had hoped, but his run was still ok. He is also on his way home to get ready for the summer sprints back here.

Has the carnival been a success for us? You betcha. A couple of Group 3 wins, a metro double at Moonee Valley and lots of excitement … so whilst it's been hard work, there's also been plenty of highlights for us.

It's going to be another busy weekend with multiple runners back at Doomben, but again I have total confidence in my staff to have things running smoothly.

Some good racing indeed with Racing Heart and Fillydelphia the stable’s best chances.

Cheers for now,
Robert

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