The feature of the final day of the Australian Jockey Club’s Autumn Racing Carnival is the $800,000, Group I, Schweppes Sydney Cup (3200m), and just as the first day of the four day carnival featured a Zabeel factor, the final day may have the same ingredient in the result of the race.
Last Saturday Headturner won the Group I David Jones AJC Australian Derby with the dam of the Anabaa gelding Monroe Magic being by the Cambridge Stud sire.
On Saturday there are two strong possibilities for the Sydney Cup with the same influence factors. Race favourite Fooram’s dam Sinjani is by the mighty sire of Zabeel, Sir Tristam, and Molotov’s dam Admit Anywhere is by Zabeel.
Jim Conlan, up once again on another raid in Sydney from his Cape Schanck base on the bottom of the Mornington Peninsula, has pushed for-year-old Molotov into the Sydney Cup of the back of wins in country Victoria and a fast closing second in the listed Neville Sellwood Stakes over 2000m at Rosehill on April 8th.
Consequently Molotov, by Grand Lodge giving him further staying credentials, has a luxury weight of 52kg under Mark Zara who rode the horse in his country wins.
Molotov, however, has not covered the 3200m before so Conlan is relying on the Grand Lodge/Zabeel factor is supply enough stamina to last the distance.