Once described as an ‘Unruly colt’, Warwick Farm trainer Jarrod Austin is confident his reformed gelding Remus is primed to play a prominent role in Saturday’s Midway at Randwick.
Although taking his time to get to the races, Warwick Farm trainer Jarrod Austin believes four-year-old Remus is ready to threaten in Saturday’s Midway at Randwick.
Unraced when joining Austin’s stables late last year, his team at Warwick Farm had their hands full in trying to prepare the son of Vancouver for the races in his debut preparation.
“He was a bit unruly and naughty as a colt, so Garry (Portelli) moved him on and I ended up with him,” Austin said.
“In his early trials with me he was a bit hard to get motivated to be honest, he had a mind of his own.
“We finally worked him out and once we took him to the races he hit the ground running.”
Hitting the line gamely for third on debut, the gelding put back-to-back wins together before a creditable midfield finish in the Grafton Guineas.
“His first campaign was really good so that’s why we targeted the Grafton Guineas,” Austin said.
“Unfortunately, he didn’t parade well that day and he got a bit above himself which suggested he had come to the end of his preparation.
“He certainly didn’t run up to his best, so we put him away.”
With both of the four-year-old’s wins coming on rain affected surfaces, Austin is full of confidence heading into Saturday’s assignment, as it looks inevitable the Randwick track will deteriorate from its current Soft 5 rating.
“I thought first-up on a firm surface he may not let down quite as well as he can, but he did and it was really impressive,” Austin said.
“Getting back onto ground that has a bit of give in it is a real positive for us.
“He will get in with 52kgs with Tyler (Schiller) on which looks really attractive if it’s going to be a wet track.
“Tyler is riding in super form and did a good job on him first-up. I think it’s all positives with him aboard and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Austin will be looking to build on from last Saturday’s success, after stable favourite Looks Like Elvis took out the Vobis Gold Bullion at Pakenham.