Aviatress embarks on Group 1 campaign in Listed Matrice Stakes at Morphettville

A Group 3 winner at Caulfield last preparation, Aviatress resumes from an 18-week spell after crushing her rivals by seven lengths in a trial at Murray Bridge earlier this month.

The 4YO daughter of Smart Missile finished fourth in the HKJC Stakes on Melbourne Cup Day, and Richard Jolly believes she’s come back a better horse, as he prepares her for the $1m Robert Sangster Stakes (1200m) on April 26.

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“She’s come back about 50kg heavier, she’s probably still 30kg over what she was racing last time,” Jolly said.

“That’s not fitness or fat, she’s just got bigger and stronger – I can’t see why she hasn’t improved.

“She’s come up well, we gave her a good, solid trial on purpose.

“I wouldn’t say she’s going in to Saturday at her top, there’s improvement in her, but in saying that the races are only going to get harder, we’re confident she’ll run well on Saturday.

“She’s a pretty good mare, we expect her to be competitive in whatever she runs in.”

A second-up assignment in the Group 3 RN Irwin Stakes (1100m) awaits, and form permitting, the mare is a strong chance to take on the Sangster and $1m The Goodwood (1200m) at her following starts, placing her on a collision course with stablemate See You In Heaven, a five-time Group winner.

“She’ll probably go right through. She’s a pretty gross kind of mare so we’re mindful it’s probably easier to keep her racing than having a month between runs,” he said.

“We’ll go Irwin, Sangster and Goodwood, you may as well have a crack at them all when they are in your backyard.”

A three-time Group winner first-up, the Sangster looms as See You In Heaven’s first run in almost six months after an unplaced run in the Group 1 Empire Rose Stakes (1600m) last November.

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“She’s on track, we purposely wanted to run her first-up in the Sangster, that’s been our plan all the way along,” he said.

“We were just mindful this time of year, the tracks are hard and she doesn’t like them, we didn’t want to risk having her jar up and not right for the good races.

“She has been pretty effective first-up. If she goes well enough, she’s another candidate to go to the Goodwood as well.”

Exciting gelding Sabaj finished second in the Morphettville Guineas last start and after opting against a tilt in Melbourne, Jolly is targeting him at the Group 2 Tobin Bronze Stakes (1200m) at Morphettville on Sangster and Australasian Oaks Day.

“We’ll freshen him up and bring him back to 1200m, I think the horse will run a strong mile or even further, he’s still a bit fragile so we thought we’d elect to freshen him up and go to the shorter races,” Jolly said.

“In the spring he’s the kind of horse that can stretch out over a trip then.”

Originally published as Aviatress embarks on Group 1 campaign in Listed Matrice Stakes at Morphettville