Trainer John O’Shea is looking to the Group 1 Canterbury Stakes with fresh confidence after Lost And Running demolished his rivals to win the Southern Cross Stakes at Randwick.
The five-year-old started a $2.25 favourite and confirmed his coming of age with a classy performance, stalking the speed and making light of his 61kg top weight to range up to the leaders before bounding clear to score by two lengths.
Overpass ($7) did a good job to hold on for second after settling on a solid speed with Standout ($11) making late headway for third.
O’Shea confirmed the Canterbury Stakes (1300m) at Randwick on March 5 was Lost And Running’s next target as he looked to land a Group 1 win.
The race is shaping up to be a great contest with Zaaki and Mo’Unga also earmarked for the feature.
“We really want to give him an opportunity to win a race of that calibre because we think he is deserving of it,” O’Shea said.
“We will turn up here in three weeks time and he will be a fit racehorse and ready to give a good account of himself.
“He is just doing everything so much better now as he’s got older.
“His wither really only popped up this spell. He had still been running downhill up until this time, so he has finally matured now.
“The next 12 months, if we can continue to keep him sound, he has got a really bright future.”
Hugh Bowman said Lost And Running had come a long way in a short time and he felt he was on the winner a long way out.
“You could see mid-race he was a bit fresh and he wanted to get going with me but I was able to get him to just settle back underneath me from the 700 metres and it was pretty much all over from that point on,” Bowman said.
“I was in complete control and I knew what he was going to give me up the straight. He certainly didn’t disappoint.”
O’Shea had to scratch pre-post favourite Quantico from the Southern Cross Stakes (1200m) when he injured himself in his stall during the week, but the trainer said the setback was relatively minor and expected him to be ready for the Liverpool City Cup in a fortnight.