Image: Steve Hart
Tim Clarke partners in leading chances in two out of three stakes races at Rosehill
Tim Clarke is banking on race fitness gains proving to be the right recipe for Mariamia when he takes on Group 1 winners Forbidden Love and Golden Mile in the Expressway Stakes at Rosehill.
The latter pair dominated the betting with Golden Mile at $2.15 and Forbidden Love at $2.70 with Mariamiya at $5.50 on the third line of the Expressway Stakes.
While the two favorites are on the restart, Mariamia heads into Saturday’s sprint with the advantage of a first win and Clarke is hoping he is decisive as he bids to continue his good record in the race. which he has won twice in the last five years. Trapeze Artist (2018) and Overpass (2022).
“He did a good job to win the first-up and race fitness will be important on Saturday,” Clarke said.
“The Golden Mile, a distance of 1200m is a short trip from his best and he is only first-up. I’m sure he has a big campaign ahead of him so he can freshen up a bit.
“The other mare (Forbidden Love) tested really well but she bogged down last time. She ran well in this race last year so she might be better at this time of year.
“Both of those groups are a winner and they guarantee a lot of respect.”
Mariamia has yet to win at stakes level but has twice been placed in Group 3 company when finishing third at Caulfield in February last year and then the same position behind King of Sparta in the Bletchingley Stakes in July While filling
Clarke’s Rosehill book also includes Perfect Proposal for the Group 3 Wide Stakes (1100m) for Guy Waterhouse and Adrian Bottle, who resumed after finishing runner-up to stablemate Platinum Jubilee in the Gimcrack Stakes (1000m) in October .
She’s gone through trials twice in preparation for her return, and Clarke is confident she’s ready for an adventurous comeback.
“I worked him on Tuesday and he pulled really well in the air, so he’s very forward,” he said.
“She doesn’t hold a heap of position so she gets in hand very quickly. I expect she’s going to see the winner for a long time in the straight.
“Going back to the dry track will also be in his favour. Gimcrack (track) was affected by rain and I think we will see the best of him on the ground.
The Perfect Proposal is at $4.60 in the early markets, behind only debutante Learning to Fly ($3.70).
The pair have met twice in Barrier Trials, with Perfect Proposal coming off trumps in their first encounter and Learning to Fly in their most recent decision.
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