A rising star of Sydney’s training ranks, Annabel Neasham will chase her first Group 1 win in Queensland with Doomben Cup favourite Zaaki.
Having already landed a breakthrough Group 1 win in her first season as a fully-fledged trainer, Annabel Neasham has a tremendous chance to get another top-level victory on the board.
Neasham graduated from running the Sydney arm of Ciaron Maher and David Eustace’s operation to taking out a training licence in her own right at the start of the current racing season.
With the support of a great group of owners including Aquis Farm, Neasham has made a flying start, bagging her first major with Mo’Unga in the Rosehill Guineas during the Sydney autumn.
With the focus of Australian racing now on Brisbane, Neasham is hoping to add to her Group 1 tally with import Zaaki in Saturday’s Doomben Cup (2000m).
“Any Group One is on the bucket list. I enjoy coming up to Queensland and Doomben is a great track, so if we can knock one off there it would be brilliant,” Neasham said.
The former English galloper laid the foundations for a fruitful winter expedition with a brace of encouraging runs in Sydney and earned himself Doomben Cup favouritism with a scintillating performance to claim the Group 2 Hollindale Stakes at the Gold Coast two weeks ago.
James McDonald has stuck with him and Neasham is looking forward to seeing how he measures up against the likes of Cox Plate winner Sir Dragonet, All-Star Mile hero Mugatoo and New Zealand wonder horse Melody Belle.
“The market has really supported him. But he’s taking on a Cox Plate winner, who is obviously a top-class horse and we haven’t taken on a horse like that yet, and Mugatoo, the All-Star Mile winner, so there is plenty of depth and we’re certainly very respectful of those two,” Neasham said.
“He’s a lovely horse and he has adapted well to Australia. Having said that, I was hoping he would win (last start) but he probably put them away more easily than I think anybody expected.
“Hopefully we can get a repeat performance on Saturday.
“His last piece of work at Doomben on Tuesday was good and he’s ready to go.”
Zaaki was a $2.50 favourite with TAB fixed odds on Thursday, ahead of Sir Dragonet ($4.60) and Mugatoo ($4.80) with that trio dominating early betting.
Market 💰: View the Odds for the Doomben Cup
They are the only runners under double-figure odds with Avilius and Shared Ambition next best at $15 apiece, while Lindsay Park’s Fifty Stars is a scratching.
