Fangirl will look to bounce back to her brilliant best at Randwick on Saturday after a below-par showing in the Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield last month.
The star mare was fourth behind Treasurethemoment in her first attempt at Caulfield, just the second time in nearly two years she has missed a placing. Scratched from the Winx Stakes (1400m) earlier in the spring due to a heavy track, Fangirl returned to Sydney immediately after the run and has been thriving since.
“She just didn’t handle Caulfield as well as we’d hoped,” said Waller stable representative Charlie Duckworth. “It was her first time around there. She still ran OK and she has still taken good fitness benefit from the trip down and up and her work has actually been really sharp since she has returned. There is no negative to her running down there and she loves the Randwick mile.”
Fangirl, now seven, remains a force against elite opposition, boasting 11 wins from 34 starts including the Group 1 Queen Of The Turf Stakes (1600m) earlier this year. She will be chasing consecutive victories in the $1 million 7 Stakes (1600m).
“She is the only filly in the race but she stumps up every prep,” Duckworth said. “She always wins a ‘biggie’ so it’s hard to knock her.”
Chris Waller will field a strong team in the 7 Stakes with Fangirl joined by Lindermann, Kovalica, Militarize and Kadavar.
Militarize, a three-time Group 1 winner at two and three, caught the eye running fifth in the Tramway Stakes (1400m) at his second run since returning from stud duties. Duckworth believes the horse is back on track.
“His last run rated quite highly in terms of all of his first-up performances. It rated as the second best first-up performance of his entire career so that indicates he is in for a good preparation,” he said. “It made it hard coming off the back of a breeding barn preparation whereas he’s coming off the back of a racing preparation now so he’s one that can bounce back and prove he is still a Group One horse.”
Punters can follow Fangirl and Militarize in the 7 Stakes by accessing the latest odds through leading Australian betting sites.
