Andrew Forsman always intended to aim Positivity at Saturday’s Gr.3 Bart Cummings (2500m) at Flemington, but the Cambridge trainer has been caught off guard by what his rising star stayer has already achieved this spring.
The Almanzor mare has made a big impression in her first two starts as a four-year-old, running second in the Listed Heatherlie Handicap (1700m) before securing a ballot-free entry into the Gr.1 Caulfield Cup (2400m) with her tenacious last-start victory in the Gr.3 MRC Foundation Cup (2000m).
That stellar start to the spring caps a rapid rise for Positivity, who made her debut less than 10 months ago with a fourth at Matamata in late December.
She rose to prominence as an autumn three-year-old with wins in the Gr.3 Sunline Vase (2100m) at Ellerslie and Gr.3 SA Fillies’ Classic (2500m) at Morphettville, along with a runner-up finish in the Gr.1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m). Positivity has now won four of her 10 starts and more than A$450,000 for prominent owner Ben Kwok.
“She seems to have gone to a new level this spring,” Forsman said. “It’s never easy for a four-year-old mare coming out of their three-year-old season, but she’s really stepped up and run a couple of the best races of her career.
“She’s been great since that Group Three win at Caulfield. Her work has been spot on and I can’t fault her at all.
“Stepping up to 2500m at Flemington on Saturday should be ideal. It’s always looked like a suitable race for her, and coming into this campaign, it was probably the first one that we really wanted to target and have her firing for. Having said that, it’s a full field and won’t be an easy race for her at all, but hopefully she’s up to the task.”
Positivity will continue her partnership with jockey Harry Coffey, who was in the saddle for both the Heatherlie and the Foundation Cup. The pair will jump from the extreme outside gate in a full field of 16 plus four emergencies. The TAB rates Positivity a $13 chance in a market headed by Berkshire Breeze ($4.40), Point King ($6) and Saint George ($7).
Safely through the Bart Cummings, Forsman is keen to take advantage of Positivity’s golden ticket into the Caulfield Cup on October 19.
“Provided she runs another solid race this weekend and comes through it well, there’s no reason not to give it a crack,” he said.
Forsman also has a busy day in store on home soil on Saturday, with eight runners entered across the Tauranga and Hawera meetings. For both Mustang Valley and Wessex, Saturday’s assignments are a deviation from Forsman’s original spring plans.
Dual Group One winner Mustang Valley made a highly promising start to her campaign with a close fifth in the Gr.2 Foxbridge Plate (1200m) at Te Rapa in August, but abandonments have wreaked havoc with her preparation since then.
She missed an intended run in an open handicap at New Plymouth on September 14, then headed to Hastings last week for the Gr.1 Arrowfield Stud Plate (1600m) and again got back on the float without a race.
Forsman scratched Mustang Valley from the rescheduled Arrowfield at Matamata on Wednesday, and the six-year-old will instead contest Saturday’s Team Wealleans (1600m) at Tauranga.
“It’s been far from an ideal prep,” Forsman said. “Hopefully we’ve got enough work into her and she can get things back on track with a nice performance on Saturday.
“She’s got to give a bit of weight away to some talented horses, but she’s looking good and I think she’s as fit as we can get her without racing.”
Mustang Valley will be ridden by Donavan Mansour, who is 11 rides into a popular return to jockeys’ ranks this season. The expat South African has spent several years working in different roles in the industry after suffering serious injuries in a starting-gates incident at Te Aroha back in 2019.
“It’s good to give him an opportunity on a quality mare like her,” Forsman said. “Hopefully she might help him get a bit of momentum up in his comeback.”
Mustang Valley is still in line for a shot at the Gr.1 Livamol Classic (2040m), which will now be run at Te Rapa on October 12. The Vanbrugh mare is currently at a $9 quote in the TAB’s Livamol market.
“The Livamol is still in our plans, although a lot is going to depend on what happens on Saturday and how she does in between times,” Forsman said.
Forsman also had to come up with a Plan B this weekend for Wessex, who will contest the Gr.3 Grangewilliam Stud Taranaki Breeders’ Stakes (1400m) at Hawera. The daughter of Turn Me Loose was being aimed at the Listed Matamata Cup (1600m), which was removed from Saturday’s card when Matamata staged the Arrowfield on Wednesday and Tauranga took over the weekend meeting.
“She’s going great,” he said. “The only frustration is that we really set her up to run in the Matamata Cup. Racing over 1400m at weight-for-age is quite a different scenario to a handicap over a mile.
“But on her best form, we know that she’s well capable of being competitive in a race like this.”
