Andrew Forsman buoyed by Aegon’s (NZ) (Sacred Falls) effort to finish fifth in the Gr.1 Champions’ Mile (1600m) at Sha Tin on April 30 will target the Gr.1 Cox Plate (2040m) in the spring.
Forsman said James McDonald told him after the race that Aegon was looking for 2000 metres.
In the Champions’ Mile, Aegon was slow to begin but ran on strongly to finish fifth, only four lengths behind the local superstar Golden Sixty (Medaglia D’Oro).
The former star Kiwi showed glimpses of his best form over the autumn when he finished fourth in the Gr.1 Futurity Stakes (1400m) before he headed to Hong Kong.
Forsman said Aegon was back from Hong Kong and was in quarantine and when he comes out of there in a couple of weeks, he’ll head to Forsman’s new Macedon Lodge facilities where he would be prepared for the spring.
The leading New Zealand trainer only recently opened the Macedon Lodge arm of his stable and he has six horses in work there.
“I would think he would run in the early weight-for-age races. He’ll be running in Melbourne more so than New Zealand initially,” he said.
“Potentially the Cox Plate is his goal. James McDonald rode him in Hong Kong against a very strong field and he was of the opinion he was looking for 2000m.”
“We might get to the Turnbull Stakes (Gr.1, 2000m) and test him over 2000m against strong company and take it from there.”
Forsman said he would campaign his top-class mare Mustang Valley (NZ) (Vanbrugh) in New Zealand for the first part of the spring as she loved wet tracks.
“If she’s racing well, we could look at some races here, but she relishes heavy ground,” he said.
Forsmsan said a couple of his promising gallopers would be prepared from Macedon Lodge for the spring.
He said Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) placegetter Full Of Sincerity (NZ) (Puccini) and smart two-year-old filly Ethereal Star (Snitzel) would be prepared from his new base.
