Goulburn trainer Scott Collings knows what it takes to win Highway Handicaps and believes he once again has the right candidate in the unbeaten Mogo Magic heading to Randwick on Saturday.
Scott Collings has high hopes for MogoCredit:Getty
The winner of his two races by big spaces at the Sapphire Coast and Wagga in November, Mogo Magic has been freshened up and brought to Sydney to chase the big prizemoney.
“You have to take a horse like him to the Highways because he is definitely good enough,” Collings said. “He is owned in similar interests to Ten Bells, and he is going better than that horse was at the same time of his career.
“When you have one like him, you want to give him the chance at the Highways for the good money when the right race comes along like this one.”
Ten Bells has won six of his 12 starts, including two Highways, the first of which came at his fourth start.
Mogo Magic has been ridden for speed in both of his wins, but Collings feels he could take a sit and be equally effective.
He scorched along over 1000m at the Sapphire Coast in 56.61 seconds, running 33.43 seconds for the final 600m in winning by 6¾ lengths on a soft track. Similar tactics were used at Wagga when he found the front and won by 3½ lengths.
“He is very fast, but we have ridden him both times to take bad luck out of the equation by leading,” Collings said. “We are going to look to take him through the grades and see how far he can get.
“I don’t think he will be a Country Championships horse because he is only three, and the 1400m might be a bit far for him at the moment.
“But he is good enough to win a few races.”
Mogo Magic is the $2.40 favourite but will face a couple of handy horses on the rise in last-start Moonee Valley winner Sparring and fellow three-year-old Gallant Star, which resumes with two wins from three starts and was placed in an open two-year-old at Randwick in July.
“He is going to have to earn it because Ron Stubbs’ horse [Sparring] is pretty good, but that’s what you get when you go to these Highways,” Collings said.
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