Talented three-year-old Mass Destruction is poised to join boom stablemate Miami Fleiss in The Jewel next month if he wins first up at the Sunshine Coast.
Mass Destruction indicated he was on target for The Jewel 3YO Prelude (1000m) on Saturday when he scored a comfortable win in a 1000 metre barrier trial at Doomben on Feburary 16.
“If he brings his last trial to the races on Saturday he’ll be right in it,” Craig Cavanough, foreman for trainer Tony Gollan, said.
“His goal is The Jewel at the Gold Coast and this is a nice little stepping stone for him first up over 1000 metres.”
Gollan holds a vice-like grip on The Jewel 3YO (1200m) at the Gold Coast on March 13 with Miami Fleiss his number one seed after her outstanding win at Doomben on February 13.
Cavanough believes the presence of several noted speed runners in Saturday’s Prelude will suit the racing pattern of Mass Destruction.
“There’s a lot of speed in the race with four or five who only know one thing and that’s to go hard so he should get a nice run in behind them,” he said.
Mass Destruction will be ridden by Ryan Maloney who has formed a lethal combination with Gollan this season.
From 97 rides for Gollan, Maloney has won 27 races at a strike rate of nearly 30 per cent.
Mass Destruction is $4.20 with TAB fixed odds for the Prelude, challenging the Michael Nolan-trained Kisukano ($4) for favouritism.
Kisukano is aiming to salvage her reputation, which was dented when she finished a disappointing eighth to Athiri in the Nudgee Stakes (1200m) at Eagle Farm on January 2, her first unplaced effort.
Trainer Michael Nolan is confident Kisukano can return to form after she scored a dominant victory in a recent Toowoomba jump out.
“She won by about eight or ten lengths and it was the best she’s ever gone in a jump out for me,” Nolan said.
“Skye Bogenhuber rode her and she said Kisukano gave her a great feel.”
In the Jewel Prelude for two-year-old fillies, Rockhampton-trained filly Sweet Dolly is a firm $2 favourite to maintain her unbeaten record.
