Just three months after his career was at a critical juncture, the promising gelding Anthracite is now set to be one of the leading contenders in a significant $750,000 race at Randwick.
Trainer Joe Pride has confirmed that Anthracite will be backing up from his tough win over a mile at the same track last weekend, and will take his place in Saturday’s Listed Sydney Gold Cup, a 2000-metre event.
This latest victory was Anthracite’s third in his past four starts, a considerable leap from his early days with Pride where he struggled to make an impact in midweek races.
“He’d been quite raw, and in his early runs, quite arrogant and not easy to get on with,” Pride commented. “But he’s really starting to think the right way now, and that’s why we’re seeing him going through the grades. He needed to improve his manners, and he’s done that, and we’re starting to see what kind of horse he can be.”
Anthracite has been the pacesetter in two of his last three wins, but he was unable to lead last weekend and still secured the victory.
Pride readily admits that the win wasn’t the most elegant, but it demonstrated that the horse had developed another facet to his racing.
“I like him in front but there wasn’t much we could do there. Winona (Costin on Thrice) wanted to take it up. He did everything wrong and still won,” Pride stated. “He’s showing each time he goes out there that he’s got some serious cardio happening. He’s not an overly big horse, but he’s got a proper engine.”
Perhaps even more telling has been the six-year-old’s robustness.
The Sydney Gold Cup will represent the ninth start of his current campaign, and he has consistently thrived on the regular racing schedule.
“He’s pretty tough. The runs just don’t touch the sides. Every time he runs he looks better,” Pride added.
With the import Perisher scratched to contest a benchmark race earlier in the program, Starzintheireyes was the $4.20 favourite on Wednesday, ahead of Barrengarry ($4.80) and Anthracite ($5).
Check out the latest racing odds on the Sydney Gold Cup at leading online bookmakers.