Caloundra trainer Stuart Kendrick will explore all avenues to get Eric The Eel to the ATC Australian Derby after his win at Doomben.
Eric The Eel ($3.90) came from last to beat a field of experienced stayers in the Mount Franklin Oprn (2200m).
Kendrick had planned to take Eric The Eel to Sydney for the Tulloch Stakes at Rosehill on Saturday.
However, he was stymied by travel restrictions due the coronavirus protocols which made it almost impossible to get the gelding south in time.
Instead, he set Eric The Eel for the Doomben race with a Queensland Derby start in mind.
When the winter carnival was scrapped Kendrick again switched his mind to Sydney and the Australian Derby.
“It has been a bit of a saga but we really want to give him his chance in a Derby and there is only one option now,” Kendrick said.
“I will see how he pulls up and then decide about getting him south. The way I see it we can travel him but not me. It will probably mean switching him to a Sydney-based trainer.
“That way he can go and we don’t need worry about restrictions on humans. I will be able to make a final decision on Sunday.”
Kendrick is sure Eric The Eel will not be out of place against elite three-year-olds in Sydney.
“I have been saying all along we wouldn’t see the best of him until he gets out to 2200m or 2400m,” Kendrick said.
“He has come from last to beat them today off a slow pace up front. It was the run of a top horse.”