Picture: Steve Hart
Contemporary from a Group 1 win in Melbourne, Gary Portelli has his sights on a NSW function
Gary Portelli is cautioning punters to rule a line by way of Encap’s Golden Eagle efficiency, assured the gelding can rebound within the $1 million The Gong and ship him his second function race win within the area of every week.
Portelli produced bonny mare Kimochi for an impressive win from a large attract Saturday’s Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes at Caulfield, and Encap might want to do one thing related after developing with barrier 19 of 20 in Saturday’s Kembla Grange showpiece.
Nonetheless, the vast draw has executed little to dent Portelli’s perception that Encap can provide the race a shake, feeling he didn’t let down on the agency monitor when midfield in the Golden Eagle (1500m).
“We’re not having a lot luck with these gates, however he’s going to get again anyway,” Portelli mentioned.
“Hopefully it is going to be a very run race and primarily based on his work on Tuesday morning, if he has any luck from that gate he’s going to be proper within the end.
“He’d had a little bit heel difficulty that we’d needed to work on (earlier than the Golden Eagle) and he simply felt the onerous monitor that day as effectively. Whereas he likes it agency, you may simply see he was holding again a bit.
“Since then, his foot is 110 per cent proper. It has been raining for the previous couple of days at Kembla, so the monitor ought to simply have the sting off it, and it is going to be excellent.”
Previous to his Golden Eagle efficiency, Encap had captured the Theo Marks Stakes (1300m) second-up and was doing his finest work late when fourth within the Alan Brown Stakes (1400m) during which Saturday’s Gong rival Gringotts completed second.
At his solely different begin over a mile, Encap completed a luckless fifth to Celestial Legend within the Group 1 Randwick Guineas.
Subsequent month’s The Ingham (1600m) at Randwick will likely be Encap’s fundamental summer season goal, supplied he runs to expectations in The Gong (1600m) .
“He’s a gelding and he’s sound. We’ll in all probability race him deep into the summer season, he’ll miss many of the autumn then come right into a Brisbane winter carnival,” Portelli mentioned.
“If he runs like we expect he’ll, he’ll goal up in the direction of The Ingham.”
A capability area of 16 plus 4 emergencies has accepted for The Gong with Large Dance winner Gringotts drifting to $5 after drawing barrier 16, whereas Territory Categorical ($4.80) has usurped him for betting favouritism after developing with gate seven.
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