Cups setback as stayers miss Hill Stakes

Thursday 19 September 2013, 1:19pm

Two of trainer Chris Waller's best chances to win a spring major will miss an important lead-up race at Randwick on Saturday.

Kelinni and Beaten Up have been withdrawn from the Group Two Hill Stakes, putting the rest of their campaigns behind schedule or in serious doubt.

Of the two imports, Beaten Up is almost certain to be sidelined for the longest.

"He's got some activity in a tendon," Waller told Sky Sports Radio.

"It would certainly put the Caulfield Cup into serious doubt."

Kelinni suffered a minor bout of colic but Waller says he is hopeful the established stayer can still figure in his target races.

"He should be back in action for the Craven Plate which will make sure he is fit enough for a Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup path," he said.

Waller accepted with five horses in the Hill Stakes but after scratching Hawkspur to run the four-year-old in the George Main Stakes, he will be left with two runners.

They are the Metropolitan joint favourite Moriarty and Bayrir, an international Group One performer having his third outing for the stable.

In a revised market on the weight-for-age race, Moriarty ($3) has top billing over Bayrir ($4).

The Hill Stakes will be a notable race for the appearance of Masked Marvel, a Lloyd Williams-owned stayer who finished at the back of the Makybe Diva Stakes field at his only Australian start.

Now a six-year-old, Masked Marvel ran midfield in the 2011 English Derby but proved his worth as a quality stayer with his English St Leger win over Melbourne Cup-bound Brown Panther a few months later.

Sea Moon and Seville ran third and fourth respectively in the St Leger and they also race out of Williams's Macedon Lodge.

There is a stable precedent for Masked Marvel to run well, or at least improve on his Flemington effort.

Mourayan resumed and finished fourth in last year's Makybe Diva before being defeated in a photo by Lamasery in the Hill Stakes.

– AAP

Latest News

Prime Thoroughbreds - We have a Host of Leaders in our Team

Tuesday, 29 June 2021

Prime Thor­ough­bred’s cur­rent rac­ing team is putt­ing to­gether quite a re­cord. We have 22 hors­es that have raced in our team at pre­sent. Six­teen of th­ese are win­n­ers in­clud­ing the Stakes win­n­ing trio Ru­bisa­ki, Fituese and Xtreme­time with Miss Di­vine Em and Miss In Charge run­n­ing 4th in Stakes races. This sees a stakes win­n­er to win­n­er ra­tio of 18.75% with a stake’s per­formed to win­n­er ra­tio of 31.25%. Th­ese are ex­cep­tio­n­al fig­ures.   More »

Freedmans land maiden Group One win

Saturday, 27 February 2021

Un­der-rat­ed fil­ly For­bid­den Love has emerged as an au­tumn car­ni­val smokey with a bril­liant per­for­mance to win the Sur­round Stakes at Rand­wick.  More »

Capriccio completes Damian Lane treble

Saturday, 27 February 2021

In a big day for coun­try-trained hors­es, War­r­nam­bool fil­ly Capric­cio has tak­en out the In­glis Dash for Daniel Bow­man.  More »

More news headlines »