A journey to Sydney in late August for a trial with The Next Episode has positioned jockey Mark Zahra to potentially win his second Caulfield Guineas.
The August 28 trials at Randwick saw Zahra partner Call Me Coach in a 1045m heat, where the Dundeel colt finished fourth.
Call Me Coach will be making only his third career start in the Caulfield Guineas (1600m) this Saturday, following wins at Hawkesbury and then a benchmark victory at Cranbourne.
The Anthony and Sam Freedman-trained colt is the least experienced of the 11 runners set to race on Saturday, but he displays enough talent for Zahra to believe he is a Group 1 winner in the making.
“I went up to trial The Next Episode and they asked me to do him,” Zahra stated. “I liked him in his trial and said, ‘let me know when he comes down to Melbourne’.”
“He was huge in the last bit at Hawkesbury (on debut) and I think that’s him, still getting it together during the race, but he’s got a powerful turn of foot, a powerful finish, if he gets it right.”
Zahra made the trip to Cranbourne on AFL Grand Final Eve to partner Call Me Coach to a 1-½ length victory over three opponents and also rode the colt in a gallop at Caulfield on Tuesday.
The jockey recognises it will be a challenging task to win on Saturday but is also aware of the considerable firepower the horse possesses.
“We’ve got pretty high hopes for his ability. He’s shown quite a lot,” Zahra commented. “This race comes around a bit quick, but they’re only three once and the race is coming up this week.”
“What he lacks for in experience, he makes up for it with ability, and we’ll need things to go right, but he’s good enough if things pan out.”
Zahra’s prior Guineas win was on Super Seth, a horse who competed in the same colours that Call Me Coach will carry on Saturday.
Both colts share Dundeel as their sire, and Zahra noted some similarities between the pair.
However, Super Seth possessed more experience when he contested the Guineas, ultimately running down Alligator Blood in the final strides.
“He’s got a bit of catching up to do and no doubt we’ll see the best of him in the autumn, but hopefully we can nick one away this week,” Zahra said. “I think he will be a Group 1 horse and in time I think he will want even further than a mile.”
“I’ve got no problem with speed in the race, that will help, but it will be managing him around these bends the best we can, so he’s got something to finish with.”
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