The 2014 Stradbroke Handicap winner River Lad will make his debut for the Kris Lees stable at Gosford on January 8.
Lees has chosen the $100,000 Listed Takeover Target Stakes (1200m) for the former Queenslander, who won the G1 Stradbroke (1400m) at Eagle Farm when trained by Natalie McCall.
It was the quickest of two open heats at that distance.
“I thought he trialled nicely,” Lees said. “The Gosford sprint looks an ideal race in which to kick him off.”The Takeover Target is a Quality Handicap, with a 62kg maximum topweight.
Lees was at Gosford after returning from the Hong Kong international meeting at Sha Tin on Sunday where his top mare Lucia Valentina finished fifth in the HK Cup over 2000m.Lees has rated Lucia Valentina’s Hong Kong performance as one of her best career runs after the mare came from last against world-class opposition.
Japanese stayer A Shin Hakari set a blistering tempo and ran his rivals off their legs, clocking the fastest ever time (2.00.9) for the feature race.Her rider Damien Oliver said Lucia Valentina's performance would have won her “eight out of 10 Group 1s in Australia”.
“She ran out of her skin; we were very proud of her,” Lees said.“Importantly, she pulled up well.”
Stable foreman Cameron Swan has remained in Hong Kong with the mare while she spends two weeks in quarantine before returning to Australia.She will then spend another two weeks at the Werribee quarantine centre in Victoria.
“The mare might do some light work at Werribee and will go into work when she comes back here.“At this stage, nothing is set in concrete for the autumn. It will all depend on how she progresses but races such as the Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick and Doomben Cup in Brisbane will certainly come under consideration.”
The $4 million Queen Elizabeth will be run on April 9 during The Championships.The $650,000 Doomben Cup is scheduled for May 21.
