Cranbourne trainer Grahame Begg expects comeback galloper Cilacap to make a good first impression for his team heading to Sydney for the autumn carnival when she races in the Group 2 Millie Fox Stakes on Saturday at Rosehill.
The four-year-old daughter of Written Tycoon travelled to Sydney last week in preparation for the fillies and mares 1300m feature, where she was a $14 TAB chance.
Trainer Grahame Begg.Credit: Getty Images
With four wins in eight starts, all in Melbourne, Cilacap will be chasing higher honours in Sydney after already adding listed and Group 3 victories to her name a year ago.
She was then sidelined for 36 weeks after having arthroscopic surgery to remove a bone chip in her knee following a 10th in the Easter Cup at Caulfield last April.
The $300,000 yearling buy, which started with Newcastle trainer Kris Lees before her Victorian owners wanted to race her closer to home, returned in the listed Xmas Stakes at Sandown on Boxing Day, finishing four lengths off winner Hedged in seventh.
Begg then gave her a break with a view to building towards the Sydney autumn carnival, where the Group 1 Coolmore Classic (1500m) at Rosehill on March 14 is her main target.
Chris Waller-trained Lazzura ($2.50) shapes as the one to beat on Saturday but Begg expected Cilacap to be finishing strongly under jockey Nash Rawiller.
โShe ran very well first up then we backed off her, gearing up to go to Sydney,โ Begg said.
โShe does like a bit of give in the ground and we felt you are more likely to get that in Sydney than in Melbourne over the carnival.
