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| Sumita Pawar |
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Trainer Cliff Brown can’t wait to watch his stable star, The Inferno perform once again on a firm track as the talented gelding makes his comeback in the Moir Stakes. This Group One sprint, taking place over 1000m at Moonee Valley on Friday night, will be The Inferno's third attempt at the race and is sure to be an exhilarating event.
In the last year, The Inferno showed great form by finishing second to Wild Ruler on a good track, but unfortunately, he struggled in soft ground and only managed to beat one other competitor. The 7YO had previously finished second two years ago, which earned him a chance at The Everest, but he was only able to secure third place, once again on soft ground.
Before joining his current trainer, The Inferno was a top galloper in Singapore, and he returned to racing in Australia with a win in the Gr.2 McEwen Stakes in September 2021. Since then, the gelding has not been able to secure a win and has only placed three times in 13 starts, with the most recent being in the Hareeba Stakes at Mornington in April.
During the winter, The Inferno was campaigned by his trainer in Brisbane, where he was given a much-needed break before returning to commence his latest campaign. The trainer is confident that the sprinter is in the best condition he has been in for a long time.
"He spelled up in Queensland and did some work up there with Barry Lockwood before coming back down here," Brown said. "He had a few weeks off after his last run up there and probably did around three weeks pre-training in the good weather."
The Inferno last raced at Eagle Farm in June and while his latest break was not as long as the one he had after a campaign last spring, what it did shown Brown was the gelding needs good tracks.
"He ran really well on those tracks up there and the day at Mornington, which was upgraded to a good three, he ran well. If he doesn't get those firm tracks, he doesn't compete like he can do.
"I reckon he's going as well as he's ever gone at the moment, but whether he is up to them, I don't know. But so long as the speed is on, and he finishes off, that will be great."
After Friday night's outing, Brown intends to go to the Gr.1 Manikato Stakes on W.S. Cox Plate Day.
"We'll see how he goes in those two races and then make a decision where we go after that," Brown said. "But he's working well, he looks well and is in a really good spot."