I Wish I Win (NZ) (Savabeel) will get the chance to end a frustrating run of narrow misses in feature races when he goes to Eagle Farm in two weeks for the Group 1 Kingsford-Smith Stakes (1300m).
Co-trainer and co-owner Peter Moody said on Monday he is pleased with the star sprinter’s condition and recovery following his narrow Doomben 10,000 defeat, despite being not so pleased with him again being edged out in a tight photo.
“He ran well but he just didn’t get the cigar and I wanted him to get that cigar,” lamented Moody, who trains in partnership with Katherine Coleman.
“He came through it well. The mare (Bella Nipotina) was better on the day. We might have gotten a slightly better run, but no excuses. We had our chance and she ran us down.
“He probably goes to the Kingsford-Smith in two weeks, but if he goes beyond that (possibly Stradbroke Handicap), I am not sure.”
The scarcely-raced sprinter has been placed in all four runs since his most recent win in the 2023 G1 T.J. Smith Stakes. He was beaten by half a length when first-up in the Memsie Stakes at Caulfield in September, before a 0.4-length defeat in The Everest in October.
First-up in the autumn, he was 0.3 lengths off them in the T.J. Smith, before his agonising 0.05-length edge out by Bella Nipotina.
All the same, those four placings have earned connections around $3.5 million in prizemoney.
