Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr’s stable has opted for remedial trial work for former European import See That Storm following a disappointing debut performance in Australia.
The gelding finished at the tail of the field on his Australian debut at Caulfield on May 30, crossing the line more than 10 lengths behind winner Jimmy The Bear.
Co-trainer Kent Jnr explained that See That Storm had an unfortunate experience at his first Australian start.
“He’s a nice horse but he had a bad experience at his first Australian start,” Kent Jnr said.
“He got very hot in the mounting yard, he wasted a lot of energy behind the gates.
“The instructions were to come back from an outside gate and hit the line, where was he, outside the lead, pulling, going head-and-head with El Rocko on a day where every winner, bar two, was widest in the straight.
“We were in the worst ground in the middle of the track, doing way too much work at a mile off a 10-month layoff.
“It was a disaster.”
The Price and Kent Jnr stable has The David Bourke Stakes (1600m) at Flemington this Saturday pencilled in for See That Storm’s next outing.
As part of the gelding’s preparation for his second Australian start, See That Storm participated in a trial at Caulfield Heath on Thursday, securing second-to-last place over the 1050m journey.
However, Kent Jnr indicated that the experience of transporting See That Storm away from Cranbourne would prove beneficial for the gelding moving forward.
“We wanted to take him back to Caulfield to give him a nice experience,” Kent Jnr said.
“We got him in the mounting yard early and he didn’t turn a hair, plus he was good behind the gates.
“He shanghaied out of the gates again, but we wanted to bring him back over the 1000 (metres), let the speed go and teach him something and I thought he found the line well.
“He’ll go to a mile at Flemington on Saturday and if the ground is not too bad, I would expect an improved showing and then we’re on our way to 2000 metres.
“He’s a nice horse, but last time was just a complete forgive.”
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