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| Dane Squance |
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Highly talented sprinter Ingratiating (Frosted) has been preferred to Paulele and Kementari and will represent Godolphin in The Everest (1,200m) to be run at Royal Randwick on Saturday, 15 October after a final decision was made today.
Godolphin Australia managing director Vin Cox and head trainer James Cummings had round-table discussions with stable and Darley stud representatives, deciding to leave Schillaci Stakes winner Paulele in Melbourne to continue his G1 quest in the Manikato Stakes at Moonee Valley next week and rely on Kementari in the Sydney Stakes (1,200m) on Saturday.
Ingratiating will go into The Everest third-up after two cracking runs in Melbourne this preparation.
The four-year-old stallion, already a three-time Stakes winner and placed at G1 level three times, came from nearly last first-up to win a Caulfield sprint on 17 September before beating all but stablemate Paulele in the G2 Schillaci Stakes (1,100m) at the same track last Saturday.
Cummings has always had a high opinion of Ingratiating, with the Frosted (USA) colt rated alongside subsequent stable star Anamoe as a juvenile.
Ingratiating finishing second in front of Anamoe in last year’s G1 Blue Diamond Stakes before a brilliant third to Stay Inside and Anamoe in the G1 Golden Slipper Stakes five weeks later.
From just 18 starts, he’s won four races and run eight placings for prize money of $1,279,500.
Godolphin has frequently given its young, up-and-coming sprinters a slot in The Everest - with Osborne Bulls finishing a great third to Redzel in 2018 after coming down the extreme outside fence in the home straight.
While the recently retired Trekking has competed with distinction in the rich race over the past three years - finishing third, fourth and sixth - Alizee carried the royal blue jacket to seventh in 2019 before Bivouac finished a fine second the following year.
Under the standard weight-for-age conditions of The Everest, Ingratiating gets a slight pull in the handicaps over the older sprinters on Saturday and, importantly, is a winner in heavy ground.
The Randwick track has copped deluge in recent months and while the running rail will be moved in 8m from last Saturday’s severely rain-affected meeting, the surface is again expected to be close to a heavy 10.
News: Godolphin