In Brief
- Promising 3YO filly will need to be good to win on Saturday.
- Brunton tunes filly up with trial at Longford.
- Siggy Carr's favourite horse lines up for hat-trick of wins.
Promising three-year-old filly Hela resumes racing in a class one handicap in Launceston on Saturday and she might need to be every bit as good as her trainer Scott Brunton believes to emerge triumphant.
Hela has started only once for an impressive win in Hobart in mid-October, although she travelled to Longford for a trial last week where she finished third in a field of five without being pushed right out.
The daughter of Night of Thunder is being aimed at feature three-year-old fillies’ races during the Ladbrokes Tasmanian Summer of Racing and Brunton is hoping she can develop into an Oaks prospect.
“I’ve been careful to take things gradually with this filly, which is why she hasn’t raced for two months,” Brunton said.
“She finds herself in a tough race on Saturday and disadvantaged at the weights compared to others.
“I’m happy with her condition going into the race and hopefully her raw ability will get her through, but I won’t be disappointed if she doesn’t win, as long as she comes through the race in good order.
“If I’m right, she will have a lengthy campaign heading towards the Tassie Oaks but at the moment these races are just small steps towards where we hope she will end up.”
Carr stable firing
The Siggy Carr stable has struck a purple patch of late and she will be hoping that continues at this meeting, especially with her favourite horse Invincible Rock that is aiming to make it a hat-trick of wins.
Carr, who has trained a double and snared a treble in the saddle at the past two meetings in Launceston, will saddle up Invincible Rock that comes up against a small but handy field in a benchmark 66 over 1100 metres.
His main danger appears to be the Ian Hay-trained Stefanidi that returned to winning form last start in Hobart where she won a class one over 1100 metres with talented apprentice Codi Jordan aboard.
However, Jordan will be on Invincible Rock to take three kilograms off his hefty impost, allowing the son of Fastnet Rock to carry 58.5kg which is a kilogram less than he lugged last start in Launceston in the same grade of race.
Watch Hela win her maiden in Hobart on 17 October.