JAMAEA IN TOP ORDER FOR THE MM 3YO GUINEAS

By Graham Potter | Tuesday, January 11, 2022

The Robert and Luke Price trained Jamaea currently tops the betting boards at $5 in a wide open $2 million Magic Millions Three-Year-old Guineas which will be run at the Gold Coast on Saturday.

The daughter of Headwater, who is already a two-time Group 2 winner having taken out both the Percy Sykes Stakes and the Furious Stakes, missed a scheduled run at Doomben when scratched from the Nudgee Stakes on New Year’s day because of the heavy track, but co-trainer Luke Price is unfazed by that slight hiccup and was happy to report that Jamaea is in very good order.

“She has settled in really well up here,” said Price, talking to Sky Racing after this morning’s barrier draw. “We elected not to go to Doomben the other day. We left it until the last minute with all the rain.

“It was the right decision I felt. I obviously would have preferred it if she had another run. I think it would have been more ideal, but my options weren’t fantastic.

“We could have gone to the Gosford Guineas. I just wasn’t that keen around Gosford. I thought it would have been a waste of time. I thought we could achieve more just giving her a trial anyway.

“Her trial was sharp on Tuesday. She came through the trial really well.

“The barrier looks idea. Tommy (Berry) has already been on the phone and he couldn’t be any happier with the draw. Tommy has received a negative result from his Covid test which was my main concern probably … but he was always confident he was going to be up here.

‘He loves the way Jamaea is going. He has obviously been on her back already a couple of times and he didn’t want to get off her.

“She had a good hit out this morning (Tuesday). I had to give her a good hit out because she will be going 1400m first up, so that is the big question mark … can we have her fit enough for that?

“She’s had three trials … and she only had three weeks off though. She is not a very big filly, so she doesn’t carry a great deal of condition anyway.

“It’s obviously up to the horse and Tommy now. You always need a bit of luck in your races but when you’ve got T Berry on … he knows the Gold Coast track and he is on the highest rated horse in the race … it gives you a great deal of confidence.

“I’m happy with what I have done with her and I’m happy she is going to run right up to her best.

“Hopefully we haven’t got to the bottom of her yet. I still think there is more to come … and hopefully this is the start of it come this weekend.”