Smokin’ Joey was one of the surprise packets of the spring carnival and his trainer Wez Hunter has even bigger ambitions for the autumn.
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During Melbourne Cup week, the injury-plagued six-year-old backed up a Group Three win with a half neck second to Boban in the Group One Emirates Stakes.
Smokin’ Joey won the tab.com.au handicap on Derby Day at Flemington a week after he featured in his third stable change, this time to Mornington trainer Wez Hunter.
The boutique trainer plans to aim Smokin’ Joey at the $3 million Doncaster Mile at Randwick in April with his campaign to kick off in the Group One Oakleigh Plate (1100m) in February.
“He’ll go first up in the Oakleigh,” Hunter said.
“It will be too short for him but it will be a good clean out for him first-up.”
Smokin’ Joey ended his spring campaign on a low note with his last place in the Group One Railway Stakes in Perth on November 23 but Hunter said there were excuses.
“He hates getting inside horses and getting cluttered up and he was inside them and struggled all the way,” said Hunter.
“He’s such a big striding bugger, he needs plenty of room.”
Hunter admits to giving some odd instructions to jockeys before they get on Smokin’ Joey – he wants them to ride him “poorly”.
“To get him to run his best you have to ride him pretty poorly and give him plenty of room,” explained Hunter.
“It doesn’t look pretty but it’s effective.
“It’s hard to get a jockey to do that because it makes them look bad but it’s the best way to ride him.”
The gelding began his career at Mornington with Lee Freedman whose brother Anthony took over when the Hall of Fame trainer stepped down.
The horse then went to Mick Price at Caulfield before returning to the more relaxed environment at Mornington.
Hunter said he had a several unraced youngsters in work as he builds his stable and he also has high hopes for recent acquisition Kentucky Dreaming.
The former Robbie Griffiths-trained gelding has had 13 starts with two wins, both over 1200m.
“We didn’t pay much for him but he’s been around the mark,” Hunter said.