Victorian mare Eternal Flame will test the Group One waters in the Queen Of The Turf Stakes, although trainer Michael Kent admits he wasn’t expecting the race to be quite so strong.
The lightly raced four-year-old has won her past two starts, following up a victory in the Group 3 Matron Stakes (1600m) with a Group 2 Sunline Stakes (1600m) triumph.
Keen to season Eternal Flame in preparation for the spring, Kent thought Saturday’s 1600m feature would be a good opportunity to bank some valuable experience, although he wasn’t expecting to see the likes of Coolmore Classic winner Zougotcha and runner-up Semana in the race.
“We did a bit of homework and we thought that Zougotcha and Semana were running in the Doncaster (Mile),” Kent said.
“Lady Laguna went to the Doncaster, Espiona went to the T J Smith, Fangirl was out, Atishu was here (in Melbourne). We thought we might miss those top-grade mares.
“(But) she is training really well, she’s in work and in form so we thought we’d give it a go. It does look a slight overreach but it’s where she is, she has won a Group Two, it was the obvious next thing.
“It does look a very deep race, but she’s drawn a nice enough gate (barrier six) and it tells you where she fits because we think she’s a Myer Classic horse in the spring.”
Eternal Flame has prepared for her Sydney debut with a couple of track gallops and a jump out in the reverse direction.
Kent said she had handled both nicely and she will be partnered by a jockey who knows her well in Damian Lane, who guided her to her first stakes win.
Regardless of the result at Randwick, Kent hopes the trip away from home and experience of racing some of Sydney’s most accomplished mares holds Eternal Flame in good stead for the future.
“It’s getting her out of her comfort zone so win, lose or draw, I think it will be a worthwhile exercise in the long run,” he said.