News

Theodore has a crack at bonus

20th Dec 2012

Racing Victoria - News - Tuesday, 18 December 2012

Crack A Roadie to be targeted at $2.4M Inglis Triple Crown bonus

Leading two-year-old Crack A Roadie is back in work at Stephen Theodore’s Cranbourne stables with the trainer set to embark on an ambitious autumn program with the colt.

Crack A Roadie will resume in the $250,000 Inglis Premier at Mornington on February 13 before continuing his pursuit of the $2.4 million Inglis Triple Crown Bonus of which he has already won the first of three legs - the $250 Inglis Banner (1000m) at Moonee Valley last October.

Theodore said Crack A Roadie’s ultimate autumn target was the second leg of the Triple Crown, the Group 2 VRC Sires Produce Stakes (1400m) at Flemington on 9 March but should he impress enough at Mornington then a Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) run at Caulfield February 23 was likely.

“If he annihilates them at Mornington then he will run in the Blue Diamond which I will to continue to pay up for,” Theodore said.

“I said to the owners if we went to Mornington and won eased down then two weeks later he’ll be in the Diamond because we’ve still got another two weeks until the Sires.

“The Sires is definitely the main aim with him through this preparation.”

A full brother to stable mate Road Trippin, who finished runner up behind Snitzerland in last year’s Inglis Premier at Mornington before running third in the Sires Produce behind All Too Hard, Theodore said Crack A Roadie was miles ahead of his brother in both ability and maturity.

“He’s just a machine now this horse, we think he’s put on nearly 45 kilos and importantly it’s in all the right places,” he said.

“Some horses might come back big around the rear or the shoulder but with this horse it’s just everywhere, he’s just a really striking looking animal right now.

“I had a couple of the owners come down when he’d been back in work for two days and we all agreed that on looks you could put a saddle on him and send him to the races now he looked so well.”

As well as winning the Sires, Crack A Roadie would need to win the $400,000 Inglis Guineas at Scone in early 2014 as a three-year-old should he wish to collect the $2.4 million Inglis bonus.

Interestingly, Theodore thinks the hardest leg of the Triple Crown series is already out of the way as he believes Crack A Roadie will be even better suited over 1400 metres with added maturity.

“The hardest part about it (the bonus) is winning the Inglis Banner (1000m) on Cox Plate Day and being ready that early and then being able then to continue on and run 1400 metres,” he explained.

“Whereas my horse is going to be looking for 1400 metres the day he wakes up.”

Click here to view Crack A Roadie's performance report

Click here to view more information about the $2.4 million Inglis Triple Crown

Story by Ben Asgari