News

Portelli Happy With Delago Bolt's Work

1st Sep 2009

Virtual Formguide - Tuesday, 1 September 2009

Trainer Gary Portelli has every reason to be confident about Delago Bolt tackling the likes of Manhattan Rain and Black Caviar in the Danehill Stakes after watching him in a jumpout at Flemington.

Although Delago Bolt finished last of the four runners, he handled the straight course well in contrast to his last start at Randwick when he ran off the track on the home turn.

The trainer flew from Sydney to Melbourne to watch the three-year-old in Tuesday's jumpout in which he was ridden by race jockey Steven Arnold.

"He went lovely, he had a very easy time," Portelli said.

"There were no signs of any problems, he went straight and Steven was very happy.

"He pulled him to the outside inside the furlong (200m) and he went to the line well."

After his wayward performance in the Up And Coming Stakes, stewards ordered that Delago Bolt must trial around a turn before racing again in Sydney but he was given clearance for Saturday's Danehill (1200m) up the Flemington straight.

But it's not only the Up And Coming effort that has worried Portelli with the Black Opal Stakes winner striking trouble at his previous two starts in the Golden Slipper Stakes and Sires' Produce.

"I know he's a better horse than he's shown but it's hard when he's been unlucky three times in a row," Portelli said.

"Hopefully this will turn things around and tell us where we are at with him.

"It would be nice to see him have an unimpeded run."

An even bigger turnaround for Portelli and his fellow Warwick Farm trainers was Monday's announcement by the Australian Jockey Club (AJC) of a major redevelopment at Sydney's outermost track.

"This is the best news since I don't know when," he said.

"We've had plenty of promises and plenty of broken promises in the past.

"This time there is a real plan in place and the move by William Inglis to Warwick Farm is fantastic.

"It is such a fast-growing area and this will be a great boost."

William Inglis has entered into an agreement with the AJC to purchase 9.5 hectares of land at Warwick Farm to build a new state-of-the-art sales complex incorporating restaurants, bars and car parking.

The AJC will use the money from the sale of the land to give the racing and training facilities a $25 million facelift.