Michael Kent Jnr didn’t necessarily think Lombardo would have such a formidable line-up to contend with in Friday’s The Country Discovery when he and co-trainer Mick Price put it on the gelding’s agenda.
The $500,000 event at Sale is the flagship race of the first Good Friday race meeting run in Victoria and will bring together a quality line-up once the field is finalised on Wednesday morning.
Goodwood winner Savatoxl heads the field that could include quality sprinters The Inferno, Swats That, Brooklyn Hustle, Halvorsen and Showmanship.
That makes Lombardo’s job of landing the $275,000 winner’s cheque tougher, but it will give Price and Kent a clear indication of whether next month’s Group 1 The Goodwood in Adelaide is a realistic target.
“The Goodwood is a logical target for him given he’s four from four in Adelaide, but all the while this race is for the same prizemoney,” Kent Jnr said.
“I’m not saying this is his Grand Final but it’s certainly been a target race for us.”
The I Am Invincible gelding will hit Friday’s 1100-metre race third-up following a sixth placing in the VOBIS Gold Comet (1000m) and a win in the Listed Manihi Classic (1100m) in Adelaide, taking his career record to seven wins from 13 starts.
“He’s a big gross horse so we were keen to slot in a race between his first-up run and this race and he was able to win the Manihi Classic and he’s stripped a lot fitter for it,” Kent Jnr said.
“He looks somewhere near his peak but he’ll need to be with a good field assembling for that race.”
Zac Spain was aboard in the Manihi Classic and will retain the ride for The Country Discovery.