A swag of betting agencies last week opened markets on the Group 1 races in Melbourne and Sydney this Spring Carnival and no name features more prominently than Pride Of Jenni.
The Ciaron Maher -trained mare occupies a place on the top two lines of betting in 10 features, including being favourite for the King Charles III Stakes (1600m) and Cox Plate (2040m).
Maher confirmed Pride Of Jenni’s campaign was being geared around those two $5 million events, at Randwick on October 19 and The Valley seven days later, but the remainder of the campaign was not set in stone other than her kick-off point.
“She’ll run in the Memsie,” Maher said.
“The target is the race in Sydney, the mile, and then into the Cox Plate, which are only a week apart.
“They’re interstate, a week apart and (there will be) travel. It’ll be tough to do, but we’ll see how we go.”
Resuming in the $750,000 Memsie Stakes at Caulfield on August 31 means the rising seven-year-old will not be taking her place in the $1 million Winx Stakes (1400m) at Randwick on August 24, for which she is second favourite behind Fangirl.
Pride Of Jenni is also second favourite in the 1400m Memsie Stakes, behind defending champion Mr Brightside.
Pride Of Jenni heads betting on the Champions Mile (1600m) and Champions Stakes (2000m), both at Flemington on November 9, but Maher said a start after the Cox Plate would depend on how she recovered from the back-up.
She has not started since her jaw-dropping Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) win at Randwick on April 13, which followed narrow defeat in the Group 1 Australian Cup (2000m) and All-Star Mile (1600m) success, but is well-advanced in her spring campaign.
“She’s done a couple of pieces of work, she’s in good order,” Maher said.
