Improved stayer Swords Drawn (Camelot) will spend his next two starts trying to win his way into Australia’s two major staying races.
The Mike Moroney-trained gelding will run in next Saturday’s Listed Mornington Cup (2400m) which carries a golden ticket into the Gr.1 Caulfield Cup (2400m).
Then he will start in the Listed Andrew Ramsden Stakes (2800m) at Flemington on May 13, which carries a spot into the Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) for the winner.
In New Zealand the son of Camelot was trained by Shaune Ritchie who bought him from the 2017 New Zealand Bloodstock Premier Sale for $140,000 when offered by Cambridge Stud.
He is proven over 3200m with a fourth placing in the Gr.3 Wellington Cup (3200m) and he won the Listed Hawke’s Bay Cup (2200m) at his final New Zealand start in April last year.
Two starts ago Swords Drawn won the Listed Torney Cup (2500m) at The Valley and then finished third behind the top-class stayers Goldman and Soulcombe in the Listed Roy Higgins Quality (2600m).
To underline the merit of that effort, both of those gallopers are high up in the Melbourne Cup market, with Goldman second favourite and Soulcombe equal third favourite.
“His run was really good as he hadn’t run for a while and he chased home two smart horses,” Moroney said.
Moroney was setting Swords Drawn for the Gr.2 Adelaide Cup (3200m) in March, and while he missed the race due to an eye problem, Moroney believes the month between runs might have been a blessing in disguise.
“I gave him a quick freshen-up because of this. He had had a long campaign, so he had a quick freshen-up,” he said.
