South Australian galloper Dalasan will run in Saturday’s Group 1 Epson Handicap at Royal Randwick.
Trainer Leon Macdonald decided to head to Sydney, where he’s had success before, following his eye-catching run in the Group 1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes at Caulfield a fortnight ago.
The last time Dalasan raced in Sydney he ran career peaks with a pair of Group 1 placings in arguably two of Sydney’s biggest races.
The five-year-old finished third in the Doncaster Mile before finishing less than a length behind star gallopers Addeybb and Verry Elleegant when third in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes.
“I think he has shown that he doesn’t handle Caulfield as well as some other horses and his Randwick form is very good,” Macdonald said on SEN Track’s Bensley.
“He’s very well, he went to the Rupert Clarke, and I thought he ran really well, he drew badly and had to go back but he did finish the race off very well.
“He can race forward, he can mix it up but I’d like to see him in the first half dozen, that’s where he races well.
The son of Dalakhani is chasing an elusive Group 1 victory, having placed four times at the elite level, and connections are hoping superstar jockey James McDonald can have beginners luck on Saturday given he'll ride the mount for the first time.
“Mark Guest (McDonald’s manager) rang me regarding him riding him, mainly because of the weights because he couldn’t ride one that had his weight and Dalasan is very close to his weight (55kg),” Macdonald added.
“He’s always been one of those horses, he’s always shown us plenty and he’s been very competitive at Group 1 level but hasn’t been able to win one, and you know it’d be nice to put that on his CV.
“He galloped up there (Randwick) this morning over 1600m and we were very happy with the way he worked.”
Dalasan is currently rated an $18 chance and will jump from barrier eight.
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