Past Winners » Sirius Prospect

5th-Nov-2011

I thought that old friend Sirius Prospect would be shorter for this than he is, and he has been in such good form of late that he is worth backing.

The Gone West gelding’s rate of progress in the last two months has been remarkable. He has won his last three races, each time coming from the rear to just get up, each time showing a really impressive turn of foot. He has been raised a total of 22lb by the handicapper for those three runs, and still you feel that there is more to come.

Of course, another step up is required if he is to win today, on his first foray into listed class, but not that big a step. He only has 4lb to find with the highest-rated horse Our Jonathan on official ratings. More than that, however, he came from what looked like a highly improbable position when he won last time at York, coming from near last to first inside the final 200 yards to win by two and a half lengths. He is probably a fair bit better than the bare form of that run.

Also, he has won and finished third in two visits to the track, ground just on the easy side of good should be perfect, and he is well drawn in stall 11, it should allow Shane Kelly to get some nice cover for him before delivering him late.

Our Jonathan is a classy sprinter, and he is a big danger, as are Libranno and Eton Rifles. Also, there is a chance that his last three races will have taken their toll, there is a chance that he has had enough for the season, and that he will not continue his progression, and it is a worry that Dean Ivory’s horses are not going as well as they were when Sirius Prospect started his roll. However, all of that is more than factored into odds of 11/2 for me.

SIRIUS PROSPECT WON (ADV 11/2, SP 9/2)