You are here

G2 Guineas challenge suits Pohutukawa at Eagle Farm

Mike Hedge

Classy filly Pohutukawa will challenge the colts in Saturday’s G2 Queensland Guineas at Eagle Farm with trainer James Cummings confident she can more than hold her own.

Pohutukawa (Blake Shinn) announced herself as a filly of great potential when winning the G3 Kembla Classic in March and has run well without success twice since.

But Cummings is anticipating a big improvement with the return to the 1,600m of the Kembla Grange race after racing at 2,000m and 1,400m at her past two.

“I think the 1,600m suits her perfectly and you couldn’t help but be impressed with that win in at Kembla Grange earlier in her prep,” he said.

Pohutukawa comes to the Guineas off a luckless eighth in the G3 Fred Best Classic at Eagle Farm two weeks ago.

“I can picture her turning around her defeat in the Fred Best Classic when she was blocked for a run and didn’t have the best of luck,” Cummings said.

“She’s a really classy three-year-old filly and I think this race is right up her alley.”

Cummings is also looking to his stable’s grand old campaigner Tally to ring up his 10th victory when he contests the G2 Brisbane Cup.

Tally (Tim Clark) has earned $1.2 million in a career that is a tribute to honesty and will need to produce his best to get into the frame here, but Cummings is satisfied that he can.

“He got caught up in the ruck last week in a tougher race, so we’re hoping that with a bit more luck he can get his chance,” he said.

The stable is also looking to Isaurian (James McDonald) to continue his winning form in the Listed Hinkler Handicap and for Plague Stone to do the same in the Listed Daybreak Lover Handicap.

“Isaurian has graduated from being a handy benchmark horse to being an open class Listed winner,” Cummings said.

“I thought his win fresh-up was full of determination, but he’s got a lot of natural speed about him.”

Plague Stone (Kerrin McEvoy), who is attempting his third win at Listed level, is rapidly living up to the potential he showed as a two-year-old.

“He showed us a lot as a young horse and he’s now proving that he has a bright future,” Cummings said.

The Eagle Farm team is completed by Duca Valentinois (Tim Clark) who runs in the Listed Wayne Wilson Handicap while Deprive (Rachel King) attempts his fourth win on end in the Listed June Stakes at Randwick.