An extended first campaign in Australia might have brought about the undoing of one-time Melbourne Cup fancy Goldman (NZ) (Verdi) in the spring, but the measures taken to rectify that are set to pay immediate dividends.
The five-year-old is a solid $3 favourite for Saturday’s Listed Gosford Gold Cup (2100m) as he searches for his first win since defeating subsequent Melbourne Cup runner-up Soulcombe (Frankel) in the 2023 Roy Higgins Quality (2600m) at Flemington.
It was the culmination of a barnstorming start to the former New Zealander’s Australian career during which time he won his first three runs by a combined total of over 13 lengths.
However, when he failed to fire in four spring appearances, trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott sent him for a lengthy spell and started again.
“In hindsight, that (first) preparation just had us on the back foot and with that, we elected to skip the autumn because that was going to be another quick turnaround,” Bott said.
“We decided to get him right, give him a good break and focus on the backend of the autumn and mainly the winter with him.
“I think that call has done him the world of good.”
Goldman appeared back to his best when resuming with a game second to two-time Group 1 winner Huetor (Archipenko) in the JRA Plate (2000m) last month on a wet track.
He will strike similar conditions at Gosford, which was rated a heavy 10 on Thursday, while the tight-turning circuit should also suit his on-speed racing style.
Waterhouse and Bott are keen to take the promising stayer to Queensland where the Doomben and Brisbane Cups, along with the Q22, are all potential targets, although how deep he progresses into the winter will hinge on his form.
“How far do we want to go through the winter? Do we potentially want to aim up at the spring again?” Bott said.
“If we do, we’ve probably got to measure what we do.
“He is in good shape and he’s exactly where we want him. We’ve just got to take him through his classes and go through the right races with him and look after him.”
