Having delivered a stellar performance to claim the Listed Sandown Cup (3200m) in his latest outing, the Phillip Stokes-trained Amade will aim to replicate that success in Saturday’s Group 2 Brisbane Cup (3200m) at Eagle Farm.
The ten-year-old rolled back the years for a dominant victory in the Listed contest, despite again missing the start.
Stokes revealed that Amade has thrived being trained from his farm rather than from a box at his stables.
“He seems to love it up here,” Stokes told Racing.com.
“We’ve got our own swimming pool, tracks, and stuff. I think just training him out of the paddock’s been the secret. He’s a lovely horse, he’s a kind horse, but if he wants to do it, he’s happy; if he doesn’t, he won’t, as you can see with his barrier manners.
“Sometimes, in his trackwork, if he doesn’t want to go another lap, he’ll just pull up and say, ‘That’ll do me.’
“He’s always going to step slow, but it’s just dependent on how many lengths he’s going to be beaten by.
“When you’re racing over 3200 metres, at least you’ve got a little while to make it up. It’s the right sort of race for him. He runs that trip no worries, he’s got no problems going the other way, he has to be in the mix.
“He couldn’t have been more impressive the other day in the Sandown Cup. I know he didn’t beat much, but he beat them well; it was a good win.”
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