Ugo Foscolo
Race Images Palmerston North
Cambridge trainer Stephen Marsh is flush with excitement on the eve of Ugo Foscolo's tilt at Saturday's Gr.1 Sothys 44th New Zealand 2000 Guineas at Riccarton.
"I'm really happy with him. He hasn't missed a beat. I can't fault him at all," Marsh said.
Ugo Foscolo goes into the 1600m Classic as a winner of four of his five starts, his one defeat coming when sixth in the Gr.2 Hawke's Bay Guineas (1400m) at Hastings last month.
However, the Zacinto gelding bounced back from that defeat when he exacted revenge on Hawke's Bay Guineas winner Mongolian Falcon in winning the Gr.2 James & Annie Sarten Memorial Stakes (1400m) at Te Rapa on Labour Day.
Saturday's race will be Ugo Foscolo's first attempt at 1600m and it's that uncertainty that stops Marsh from declaring his horse in the feature.
"The only question mark you can put on Ugo Foscolo is whether he will run out a strong 1600m - and that's my only concern," Marsh said.
"But he knows how to win. He knows where the finishing line is and that will hold him in pretty good stead. If that's the only concern with him, I still wouldn't swap him with any other horse in the race."
Ugo Foscolo flew to Christchurch on Wednesday and had settled in well, Marsh reported.
"He had a bit of a trot and canter this morning and he's thriving," Marsh said, adding that he felt for rival northern connections who had their travel plans disrupted when the scheduled flight to Christchurch on Thursday had to be cancelled due to fog at the destination.
"Thank God we didn't travel down today. It's not ideal for those horses and we do have some empathy for them too because that's what happened to us last year with No More Tears in the 1000 Guineas."
Marsh said Ugo Foscolo would spell after the 2000 Guineas ahead of autumn racing which could see him campaigned in Australia.
"He'll definitely go to the paddock straight after this one. We'll bring him back when he tells us he's ready and then we'll hopefully look at tackling some good races in the autumn." - NZ Racing Desk.
"I'm really happy with him. He hasn't missed a beat. I can't fault him at all," Marsh said.
Ugo Foscolo goes into the 1600m Classic as a winner of four of his five starts, his one defeat coming when sixth in the Gr.2 Hawke's Bay Guineas (1400m) at Hastings last month.
However, the Zacinto gelding bounced back from that defeat when he exacted revenge on Hawke's Bay Guineas winner Mongolian Falcon in winning the Gr.2 James & Annie Sarten Memorial Stakes (1400m) at Te Rapa on Labour Day.
Saturday's race will be Ugo Foscolo's first attempt at 1600m and it's that uncertainty that stops Marsh from declaring his horse in the feature.
"The only question mark you can put on Ugo Foscolo is whether he will run out a strong 1600m - and that's my only concern," Marsh said.
"But he knows how to win. He knows where the finishing line is and that will hold him in pretty good stead. If that's the only concern with him, I still wouldn't swap him with any other horse in the race."
Ugo Foscolo flew to Christchurch on Wednesday and had settled in well, Marsh reported.
"He had a bit of a trot and canter this morning and he's thriving," Marsh said, adding that he felt for rival northern connections who had their travel plans disrupted when the scheduled flight to Christchurch on Thursday had to be cancelled due to fog at the destination.
"Thank God we didn't travel down today. It's not ideal for those horses and we do have some empathy for them too because that's what happened to us last year with No More Tears in the 1000 Guineas."
Marsh said Ugo Foscolo would spell after the 2000 Guineas ahead of autumn racing which could see him campaigned in Australia.
"He'll definitely go to the paddock straight after this one. We'll bring him back when he tells us he's ready and then we'll hopefully look at tackling some good races in the autumn." - NZ Racing Desk.