Signs that Craig Ritchie is gradually gaining a foothold in the highly competitive world of Sydney horse racing could become clearer at Randwick on Saturday.

Setting up at Warwick Farm three years ago with a horse who had reached his mark and a two-year-old who has since left the stable for the Australian outback, winners have been hard to come by for a trainer with a rich New Zealand racing pedigree.

But with gallopers like Tonopah, a stayer on the move, it seems assured the next three years will produce better results.

Tonopah, the favourite to bring up a hat-trick of wins in the TAB Quaddie Handicap at Randwick on Saturday, is the standout on latest form among 17 horses in work for Ritchie.

"I'm pretty happy with my team, especially after only starting off with two horses three years ago," Ritchie said.

"One of them was an old horse called Solid Billing who had won $300,000 to $400,000 at the time and he had sort of reached his level.

"The other one was a Benicio filly who still can't win a race at Alice Springs.

"Waratah Thoroughbreds is supporting me and I'm pretty happy with the way things have gone in three years.

Mining magnate Paul Fudge is behind the Waratah Thoroughbreds banner and he is the owner of Tonopah, a horse sourced as a weanling in the United States.

"I've had him all the way through but he's always been six months behind the others because he is bred to northern hemisphere time," Ritchie said.

"He ran behind Hawkspur and a couple of other good horses up there in the Queensland Derby last year but that was on a rain-affected track.

"That campaign confirmed to us he wasn't any good on wet tracks."

Tonopah was scratched from a midweek race to concentrate on Randwick and he heads to headquarters after wins at Hawkesbury and on his home track.

It will be an audition for something better with Ritchie already making plans for Tonopah to have a short break from racing.

"I've got the (Group One) Metropolitan in the back of my mind if he performs well enough this week and if he performs well enough once he comes back," Ritchie said.