Joe Pride is hoping to end a tough week on a high when he saddles up a handful of runners at Randwick, headed by Carrington Stakes fancy Titanium Power.
The trainer was set to have up to three runners in the Listed sprint but lost the horse who would have arguably been his top seed, Taksu, to a career-ending leg injury on Tuesday when the seven-year-old bowed a tendon.
“It was quite shattering and it is curtains for him,” Pride said.
“He’s been a great horse. He has won nearly $600,000 and he has been a lot of fun.”
Taksu’s retirement leaves Pride with Titanium Power and Snippy Fox in the Carrington Stakes (1400m), although the latter will only take her place if the track is a soft 5 or worse.
Titanium Power will be chasing his third win at the distance having bounced back from a brace of unplaced performances at the end of last year with a bold frontrunning victory at Rosehill earlier this month.
Pride said the gelding had genuine excuses at his previous starts and should enjoy a five-kilo weight drop on Saturday.
“He had heart arrhythmia at Rosehill and the start before that he lost a shoe at Newcastle,” Pride said.
“It was a couple of bad runs in between two wins. He is a lovely, consistent horse and he will enjoy the situation there on Saturday.
“He doesn’t have as much weight as he is accustomed to carrying and he should get control of the race from an inside draw.”
Stablemates Lekvarte and former New Zealander Elettrica go head-to-head in the Fujitsu General Handicap (1600m) with Pride particularly keen on the chances of the former.
Runner-up over 1250m at Kensington on resumption, Lekvarte won her next start at Randwick then drifted back to last before making late headway in the Belle Of The Turf Stakes (1600m) at Gosford.
“She ran a slashing race first-up, even better second-up and the other day was a real forgive run,” Pride said.
“She got lost around Gosford, got a long way back and she gets the blinkers back on to sharpen her up.
“It’s a bit of a sweet spot for her the mile and she gets a nice middle draw. With the blinkers on, I think she will be really hard to beat.”
Elettrica has proven to be less straightforward since joining Pride’s team in the spring and will be on trial at the distance.
“She does things wrong and the gates are an issue for her, but she has had no luck, I will say that about her,” Pride said.
“The mile is a bit of an experiment, but she is racing like she will appreciate it.”