‘It’s going to be interesting, isn’t it’
McDonald looking forward to informative Caulfield Guineas Prelude with Angel Capital
Clinton McDonald believes Angel Capital (Harry Angel) can take the next step towards showing he belongs in the upper echelon of a rare crop of three-year-olds when he contests Saturday’s Caulfield Guineas Prelude (Gr 3, 1400m).
Australia has been blessed by a dizzying array of second season talent. From Growing Empire (Zoustar) to Broadsiding (Too Darn Hot), to Autumn Glow (The Autumn Sun) and Hayasugi (Royal Meeting), to Storm Boy (Justify) and the horse who beat him into third last Saturday, Traffic Warden (Street Boss).
And that’s not to mention Golden Slipper (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Lady Of Camelot (Written Tycoon), and the unfortunately scratched one-time Blue Diamond (Gr 1, 1200m) favourite Bodyguard (I Am Invincible), who reappeared on Monday at Rosehill with a six-length barrier trial win.
Several more are worthy of inclusion, but McDonald feels Angel Capital definitely deserves to be in the top bracket.
The sizeable colt gave evidence with a slashing victory first-up in Moonee Valley’s McKenzie Stakes (Listed, 1200m), his second win in four starts either side of a fifth as favourite in Doomben’s Spirit Of Boom Classic (Gr 2, 1200m) and a ninth in Eagle Farm’s Sires’ Produce Stakes (Gr 2, 1400m).
Both Brisbane runs were on rain-affected going, with McDonald reckoning the official Soft 7 for the Spirit Of Boom raced “more like a Heavy 10”.
With fine weather forecast for Caulfield all week, barring a slight chance of rain on Thursday, McDonald is hoping Angel Capital will be able to show off his talents again on dry ground on Saturday, as he heads towards the stallion-making Caulfield Guineas (Gr 1, 1600m) on October 12.
“He’s very well,” McDonald told ANZ Bloodstock News. “He’s come through his last run in good order. He’d do a piece of work [Tuesday] morning, probably over five furlongs, and that’ll get him ready for Saturday.
“He hasn’t done much since his last start, but he’s a horse who does enjoy working, so it’ll probably be a nice gallop without getting to the bottom of him.
“This race should bring him right on. He’s exactly where we need him to be. He looks well, is eating well, and is pretty fit. He was in Queensland for two months, then he had another six weeks down here [in Melbourne] before he raced. So there’s a good base of fitness in him.”
Angel Capital is currently on the sixth line of betting at $15 for the Caulfield Guineas. Dual Group 1 winner Broadsiding is $3.50 favourite, ahead of Storm Boy at $5, Linebacker (Super Seth) at $6, Traffic Warden at $8 and Anode (I Am Invincible) at $13.
“It’s going to be interesting heading towards the Guineas, isn’t it? You’ve got Broadsiding, Traffic Warden and those types. And the horse I’d be taking away from last Saturday would be Linebacker. He looked terrific,” McDonald said of the John O’Shea and Tom Charlton-trained colt, who surged home from the rear for fourth in the Run To The Rose (Gr 2, 1200m).
“All we can do is look after our horse. Hopefully this week he can produce what he showed us last time, and we’d be happy with that.
“He’s got to be winning or be very unlucky for us to be saying we’re going to the Guineas and we think we’re a live chance. You always like to see a horse backing up, and hopefully he can do that on Saturday.”
Angel Capital is at least from the type of family that could sweeten a stud deal, and the current omens are strong.
Half-brother Berkeley Square (Territories) won at Flemington on Saturday in a 1700-metre handicap – his sixth win in 20 starts – to follow earlier victories at Group 2 and Listed level.
Another half-brother is seven-year-old Senor Toba (Toronado) – winner of one Australian Group 3, two more in Hong Kong, and placed twice at Group 1 level. The seven-year-old had a barrier trial last week ahead of his next Hong Kong preparation.
Angel Capital is the third stakes winner from five foals to race for his dam Bahamas (Teofilo), who only won a maiden but was three-times stakes placed, including a third in Morphettville’s Australasian Oaks (Gr 1, 2000m).
Bred by veteran South Australia’s David Peacock – also the breeder of Senor Toba and Berkeley Square – Angel Capital was the 11th-highest lot at Inglis Premier last year, when bought from Mill Park Stud’s draft for $400,000 by McDonald clients Upper Bloodstock for Hong Kong-based owner Gregory Ho.
“He’s a lovely colt,” McDonald said of the handsome dark bay. “When you see him in the flesh, you can see why he cost that much. He’s out of a good mare, who’s been a good producer.
“Upper Bloodstock have been good supporters of mine, and I was lucky enough to get him to train. Hopefully he pays them back, which I think he will.”
McDonald and Upper Bloodstock also combined with Mugen (Deep Field), a $160,000 Premier purchase who won his second start at Moonee Valley before being sold to Hong Kong. There, the six-year-old has won four more, including a Group 3, and ran third in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize (Gr 1, 1200m) last April.
Angel Capital will tackle a stronger field this Saturday than in the eight-runner McKenzie, and will again meet the horse he beat into a 0.8 length second that day in Bosustow (Blue Point).
Last weekend was deadly for some second-up short favourites who tried in vain to frank impressive fresh wins, such as Storm Boy, Joliestar (Zoustar) and Via Sistina (Fastnet Rock), but McDonald has no fears of Angel Capital suffering a let-down after his fresh run.
“He’s had a second-up run before, and it was on a heavy track, which he didn’t like,” he said. “But there’s no reason why he shouldn’t turn up. We think he’s a good colt and we’re looking forward to sending him out and hopefully we get dry ground.”
Another prospective sire whose relatives have done well by him lately is $900,000 Magic Millions Gold Coast colt Bosustow.
Raced by a group headed by Rosemont Stud, and trained by Annabel Neasham and Rob Archibald, he’s a half-brother and stablemate to former West Australian star Amelia’s Jewel (Siyouni). The five-year-old showed she was back near her outstanding best with a 1.3 length second to Royal Patronage (Wootton Bassett) in the Tramway Stakes (Gr 2, 1400m) on September 7, in her first run since being moved east.
“It was good to see Amelia’s Jewel come back so well. She’s helping our cause and hopefully we can help hers too,” said Rosemont’s Anthony Mithen.
Bosustow ran third in Traffic Warden’s VRC Sires’ Produce (Gr 2, 1400m) in his first try up at that distance in March. Three months later, his long campaign had its highlight when his maiden attempt at a mile yielded third place in Broadsiding’s JJ Atkins (Gr 1, 1600m) at Eagle Farm.
Still, Saturday will tell more as to whether he’ll head to the Caulfield Guineas or perhaps be kept for shorter distances.
“We’ve always thought he was more a 1400 [metre] or mile horse, and that’s how Annabel has trained him,” Mithen said. “But it was interesting that Blake Shinn got off him after the McKenzie and said, ‘This is a sprinter’.
“Whether the horse tricked him a bit first-up is a possibility, but we’ll find out more on Saturday, as to how we should go with him – on to the Caulfield Guineas or maybe look at shorter trips.
“He’s come along really well and is in good shape. He did a great job in the McKenzie. He had to cart the field up to the front two, and then it was set up for one to come up and beat him, and a pretty good one did, in Angel Capital.”
Meanwhile, James Harron colts syndicate galloper Bodyguard showed he was ready to progress from a mixed two-year-old season into an impressive spring by demolishing a 1030-metre Rosehill barrier trial field by 6.2 lengths on Monday.
Mega buyer Harron’s top-priced 2023 purchase at $1.6 million, Bodyguard won Flemington’s Maribyrnong Trial (Listed, 1000m) on debut last October and the Blue Diamond Prelude (Gr 3, 1100m) in February, but was controversially scratched by Racing Victoria vets the day before the Blue Diamond.
His preparation out of kilter, the colt ran fourth of eight in the Todman Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m) before failing in the Slipper, which at least led connections to give him a long spell, mostly in the Queensland sun.
He showed the benefits of that with his trial win, although his trainer Peter Snowden cautioned it was perhaps not as stunning as it looked.
“He went well, but we were expecting it,” Snowden said. “He didn’t beat much, and they were all stayers. That’s why he led and was able to so easily kick away from them.”
After resuming in the Heritage Stakes (Listed, 1100m) at Rosehill on Saturday week, Bodyguard is likely to be aimed at what’s set to be a classic edition of the Coolmore Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) at Flemington on Derby Day.
The $20m The Everest (1200m) is another possibility, particularly since Harron is a slot holder for the race and his main candidate Espionage (Zoustar) has been sent for a spell due to a minor injury.
“You’ve got to be good to go to The Everest,” Snowden said. “We’ve got a long way to go before we get there yet. We’ll see what happens.”