Trojan Warrior will step out at Awapuni on Saturday ahead of a return to Group One competition.

The five-year-old has quickly bounced back from illness and he will strip in good order for the McDonalds Restaurant Manawatu Cup Prelude.

Trojan Warrior was out of sorts last time when he was unplaced in the Gr.3 Eagle Technology Stakes at Ellerslie.

“We ran some blood tests on him and the vet said the horse had a virus so we gave him a few days off and he’s back to normal now,” trainer Anne Herbert said.

Runner-up in both the Gr.1 Easter Stakes and the Gr.2 Awapuni Gold Cup last preparation, Trojan Warrior will carry 60kg at Awapuni and that impost has determined his future path.

“I was expecting that and we’ll use the race as a stepping stone to the Gr.1 Zabeel Classic at Ellerslie on Boxing Day,” Herbert said.

“If he’s going to be lumping that sort of weight we may as well run at weight-for-age.”

A last-start stutter aside, Trojan Warrior has come up well this campaign as evidenced by his defeat two runs back at Tauranga of the subsequent Gr.1 Captain Cook Stakes winner Aide Memoire.

“I thought he may have needed that run, but everything panned out perfectly for him,” Herbert said.

She is also looking forward to Sunday’s meeting at Ellerslie with the three-year-old Georgethefifth, who takes on his own age group in the Listed Race 4 Life BMW Salver.

“I really like him, he’s a work in progress and there’s a lot of improvement to come,” Herbert said.

“He’s got the ability and he will stay. He holds a nomination for the Derby so Sunday will give us a line on him.”