“Ah, the Miss Finland colours”.
It might have only been trackwork on Tuesday, but Craig Williams still got a kick out of donning the colours he wore aboard a filly who, until Mr Brightside came along, was the horse he won his most races aboard.
Williams won five Group 1s on Miss Finland, including the 2006 Thousand Guineas, and he will chase another in them this Saturday when he partners the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott-trained Dominetta.
“I won a lot of races on Miss Finland, she was an amazing horse, so it brings back great memories,” Williams said of putting his arms through the Arrowfield Stud colours.
Dominetta does not enter the Thousand Guineas with the record of Miss Finland, who had won the previous season’s Golden Slipper, but the $500,000 Magic Millions yearling gave him a great feel in the course proper workout with last-start Flemington winner Catoggio on Tuesday.
“She’s got a really good action, she’s not overly big, but she covers the ground really well and I can feel how well she is,” Williams said.
“She had a really good look around, she’s really healthy and well and once she got in a straight line and I asked her to quicken, she was really solid through the line.”
Of the 13 runners in the Guineas, only favourite Aeliana, the horse she beat in the Carbine Club Stakes – Another Prophet – and Group 2 Moonee Valley Fillies Classic winner Double Market have run over 1600m, but Williams has faith in Dominetta’s ability to run 1600m.
She was cut down late by Aeliana in the Group 3 Reginald Allen Stakes (1400m) two runs ago, but then hit the line stylishly to finish third to Guineas rivals Zeitung and Matisse in the Group 3 The Vanity when staying at 1400m.
Dominetta is by the sire of last year’s Guineas winner, Joliestar, while her dam Debonnaire is also the mother of Hartnell, a son of Authorized who scored one of his four Group 1 wins in the 2400m Tancred Stakes and was placed in a Melbourne Cup.
“Most of them coming from the same reference and they haven’t been there, only a couple have run in mile races, but the majority are stepping up into the race for the first time at 1600.
“Provided she has come on from the other day, she can win the Thousand Guineas.”
Dominetta is a $16 chance in the Thousand Guineas, in which she will start from barrier nine.