Attard looks to the past for inspiration with in-form Ruby Flyer
Hometrack Rowley Mile test for progressive five-year-old son of Flying Artie
It won’t be quite history repeating itself, but Hawkesbury co-trainer Jason Attard hopes there’s a few parallels to his former stable star, the Group 1-placed Sons Of John (Oratorio), beyond Ruby Flyer’s (Flying Artie) pedigree.
Ruby Flyer, one of two Attard-trained runners in today’s Rowley Mile (Listed, 1600m) at Hawkesbury, has won four of his past five starts and progressed from a lowly four-year-old-and-up provincial maiden victory to metropolitan success in the space of three months.
Eight years ago, Sons Of John went on a meteoric rise through the grades, winning the Hawkesbury Gold Cup (Gr 3, 1600m) and two starts later he ran third in the 2015 Epsom Handicap (Gr 1, 1600m), two and a half lengths behind Winx (Street Cry) no less.
While not yet outlining any such bold plans for five-year-old gelding Ruby Flyer – out of the stakes-placed sister to Sons Of John in Kellyville Flyer – he has earned a shot at another of the Hawkesbury Race Club feature races, the Rowley Mile.
“He has been winning so convincingly and he’s got a lot of traits of his old uncle. Sons Of John did the same sort of thing, he progressed through his grades quite quickly and won a Hawkesbury Cup,” Attard, who trains in partnership with his wife Lucy Keegan-Attard, told ANZ Bloodstock News yesterday.
“I think his benchmark might’ve been about the same when he won the Hawkesbury Cup, so it’s definitely worth (a shot at the race).”
Sons Of John won the 2015 Hawkesbury Gold Cup with a benchmark rating of 71, while Ruby Flyer, who is by Blue Gum Farm’s Group 1-producing sire Flying Artie (Artie Schiller), has a benchmark rating of 68, jumping five points on the back of a Benchmark 72 Handicap (1600m) win at Warwick Farm on July 19.
The month between runs has been deliberate, an approach which also worked with Sons Of John.
“He races every four weeks, he doesn’t get the guts raced out of him, so he’s able to have a longer preparation,” Attard said of homebred Ruby Flyer.
“I think when Sons Of John won the Hawkesbury Cup he might’ve been start 12 or 13 for the prep. He wasn’t racing every week or anything like that.”
The first of only two foals out of Kellyville Flyer – her other offspring is a two-year-old filly by Bowness Stud’s D’Argento (So You Think) – Ruby Flyer is described as a “true little professional”.
His relatively late coming of age, Attard says, can be put down to the fact that Ruby Flyer wasn’t broken in until he was a two-year-old.
“He just needed time… and he didn’t have a hell of a lot of conditioning before [being broken in],” the trainer said.
“So, I couldn’t take him to the races until he was a bit older. He hadn’t done enough work basically.”
Ruby Flyer was last night considered as a $7 equal third favourite, but Attard did not discount the chances of stablemate Luvoir (Deep Field) ($34), an on-pacer who was runner-up on the Kensington track at Randwick on August 2 over 1550 metres.
“I wouldn’t be writing him off just because of his price. He’s quite a tough horse and we’ve figured out his racing pattern and how he likes to run,” Attard said.
“He’s drawn OK in barrier five and Hawkesbury can favour front-runners. It’s a bit of a query with Momack in the race, another leader, so what happens out in front will make a difference.
“His last few starts in his last prep were outstanding and it’s just great to have two runners in the big race.”
Jason Collett will ride Ruby Flyer, while his sister Alysha will partner Luvoir.
Meanwhile, co-trainer Paul Snowden suggested Rowley Mile favourite Tazaral (Fastnet Rock) ($4.80), who has won two races straight this preparation at Randwick, was no certainty to run at Hawkesbury.
The imported Tazaral has drawn barrier 14, which has Snowden considering other options for the in-form gelding.
“We will probably make our mind up right up until 7.29am [before deciding whether to scratch],” Snowden, who trains in partnership with his son Paul, told Sky Racing.
“We’ll assess track conditions and things like that, but he’s certainly a horse on the way up and he hasn’t gone backwards by any means and if he does run he’ll be very hard to beat.”
Ruby Flyer’s sire Flying Artie, also the sire of Newgate Farm’s dual Group 1 winner Artorius, will stand for a fee of $16,500 (inc GST) in Victoria this year.