Photo: Grant Peters
Tofane will make a welcome return to her home track of Flemington on Saturday when she contests the Gr.1 Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m).
The daughter of Ocean Park ran third first-up in the Gr.1 Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield last month, and trainer Michael Moroney believes she will appreciate the roomier track at Flemington.
“I thought she struggled a bit around that last corner (at Caulfield),” Moroney told SENTrack.
“Just the way the race was run, they started to really sprint around that corner. She got off the bridle a wee bit as she was getting dictated to as to when they quickened and crabbed around the corner a bit.
“I think if Craig (Williams, jockey) had been outside them he would have quickened before then. She got off the bridle chasing.”
“Just when I look back on her form, all of her Group One wins have been on big tracks, so I think Flemington should suit her.”
Tofane has yet to race over a mile, but Moroney has longheld the opinion that she would thrive over the distance, and he is looking forward to putting that theory to the test this weekend.
“I am really happy with her, all the signs are good. She has tightened up a bit, as you would expect with a first-up run,” he said.
“We think she has improved and 1600m should suit.”
Tofane was bred by Curraghmore Principal Gordon Cunningham, who elected to retain the filly and send her to Moroney’s Matamata barn under the care of co-trainer Pam Gerard.
She won an 820m trial at Te Teko before Ballymore Stable clients purchased her from Cunningham and she was transferred to Moroney’s Melbourne barn.
Moroney is also looking forward to lining up new stable addition Not An Option in the Listed The Sofitel (1400m) on the Flemington undercard.
“He will be an interesting runner,” Moroney said of the former Tony Pike-trained entire.
“He is going really well, he looks terrific. It’s his first run for our stable and I have been taken by the horse, he is a nice horse.
“He has come back after a short break. He has settled in really well and he is still an entire but has been good to handle, and good to do anything with.”
Not An Option was bred by Aquis Farm with Curraghmore and Hallmark Stud's Mark Baker securing an interest in the colt to bring him to New Zealand to offer him at the yearling sales at Karaka where he was purchased by Pike from the Curraghmore draft during the Book 1 session at the National Yearling Sale. -NZ Racing Desk
