Chilly Girl ready to take flight after red-hot return in Rosebud

Rosehill trainer Gerald Ryan was encouraged for a shot at the group 1 Flight Stakes (1600m) with Chilly Girl after she gave his stable back-to-back wins in the listed Rosebud (1100m) at home on Saturday.

Chilly Girl ($6.50) enjoyed a dream run behind leader and favourite Blue Door ($3.60) before taking over at the 50m mark on the way to a one-length victory for jockey Tim Clark in the feature for three-year-olds.

The Trapeze Artist filly was making her long-awaited return, having been an impressive winner of the Widden Stakes in January at her only start before a hamstring strain a week later ruled her out of a Golden Slipper campaign.

Ryan, who trains in partnership with Sterling Alexiou, was now eyeing the Princess Series for three-year-old fillies with the Bert Vieira-owned talent. He was confident she would fire again in the group 2 Furious Stakes (1200m) and Tea Rose Stakes (1400m) and possibly over the mile in the Flight.

“We’ll go to the Furious, the Tea Rose then we’ll decide at the end of 1400 whether we’ll try her at the mile … I reckon she’ll get a mile,” Ryan said.

“I just said to Bert, I rang him straight away and I said it will run 1400 easy.”

Ryan said Chilly Girl had returned stronger after a longer-than-needed break following the injury.

“I know Timmy said after she trialled her here last Friday, he said, ‘I can’t wait to give this thing a hit around the tail because I reckon it will explode’.”

Ryan and Alexiou won the Rosebud last year with Skyhook.

September path for Steel Will

Chris Waller was looking to a similar path for September Run’s half-brother, Steel Will, after he joined the premier trainer’s Coolmore Stud Stakes possibilities with a tough win at Rosehill.

Steel Will was a $1.65 favourite with James McDonald aboard for the benchmark 72 (1300m) handicap for three-year-olds and he was made to work in steady rain to run down Plagiarism and the hold out Savvy Diamond. Waller was pleased with the I Am Invincible colt’s effort on a 13-day turnaround from his Wyong maiden win.

Steel Will is out of the same mare, Pittsburgh Flyer, as Waller-trained September Run, which won the Poseidon Stakes at Flemington before taking out the Coolmore there in 2020.

Waller was eyeing the Poseidon on September 12 as a straight-track experience for Steel Will ahead of the Coolmore. He said Campione D’Italia and Fireball were others in the Coolmore frame.

Concordia Wind gave Waller and McDonald a double when she made light work of her rivals. Yulong-owned Eagle Express and Althoff later made it four winners for Waller, and a treble for Zac Lloyd.

Waller army ready for Winx challenge

Chris Waller said Aeliana would be among several of his Winx Stakes nominations as he prepared for a possible clash with Sheza Alibi at Randwick next Saturday.

Doncaster winner Sheza Alibi could be a surprise addition to nominations on Monday for the first group 1 of the season, but the Memsie Stakes a week later at Caulfield still looms as her likely return.

Aeliana could also resume in the Memsie, but Waller said she would be among entries for the Winx after trialling well on Friday at Randwick. It came after she missed a trial 10 days earlier when hurting her leg in the gates.

“She can run next week, she had a good pipe-opener, so she’ll definitely be in the nom,” Waller said of Aeliana possibly running in the Winx.

Waller-trained Autumn Glow remains an odds-on favourite for the Winx, where stablemates Beiwacht, Lindermann, Lady Shenandoah, Fangirl and Angel Capital would be among nominations. Waller was leaning towards the Memsie with Angel Capital, where he could meet stablemates Buckaroo and Barnavara.

Autumn Glow, Autumn Boy, Barnavara, Lady Shenandoah, Beiwacht, Buckaroo and Campione D’Italia had an exhibition gallop after race one at Rosehill on Saturday.

“It would be interesting, it would be a good race,” Waller said of Sheza Alibi in the Winx.

“And that’s what I say, you’ve got to be prepared for anything. We’ve seen with some good horse I’ve trained in the past, there’ll be a horse there ready to take them on, so they’re fit. They’re ready to go.”

Roller-coaster ride for Freedman

Brother Anthony Freedman and Polyglot brought a smile back to Michael Freedman’s face after the Randwick trainer was left shaking his head in disbelief when Transcend lost to Brad Widdup-prepared Mind Ya Bizz on protest at Rosehill.

Tommy Berry-ridden Transcend overhauled Zac Lloyd’s Mind Ya Bizz by a half head in the 1400m benchmark 78 handicap to land her first win in Australia at her seventh start since coming from New Zealand, before the protest.

Mind Ya Bizz had drifted out into Transcend’s line in the straight, but then Berry’s horse shifted back in and made contact with Lloyd’s close to the line. Stewards determined that the “heavy contact” two to three strides before the post resulted in Mind Ya Bizz becoming “noticeably unbalanced” and ultimately cost her the race.

Polyglot, with Tim Clark aboard, then eased the pain for Freedman in the next race, winning the 1100m benchmark 78 handicap.

Anthony, who trained favourite Street Artist, which finished a close third, quipped “protest” as he passed his brother, much to many’s amusement.

“Better after that,” Michael said.

“Had [Anthony] run second, I think he said he was going to protest.”

As for the protest loss, he said: “A little disappointing but, you know, you’ve got to go with the judges’ call, right?”

Anthony and son, Sam, finished the day with Barbaric Lad giving them a first Sydney win back from a 28-day disqualification.

Singleton unlocks former expensive prospect

Scone trainer Scott Singleton and apprentice Braith Nock found the key to former $850,000 yearling Lyon, which took out the Highway Handicap on Saturday.

The four-year-old Zoustar-Solar Charged gelding burst through the pack late to claim the class 3 1300m Highway ahead of Xtreme. It was a third win in his past four starts, after starting his career with Singleton with five winless runs. Lyon came to Singleton as an unraced galloper Shaky Bloodstock bought online for $60,000.

“He’s a horse you just need to keep trying to get into a good flow, and he’s also had a bit of a wind problem, so the smoother run that we got was better,” Nock said.

Attract proposition for Freedmans

Co-trainer Will Freedman was eyeing the Epona Stakes in March for Attractiveness after she narrowly held off Cuban Cigar to win back-to-back Midway Handicaps.

Freedman said the four-year-old mare, a $1.80 favourite on Saturday, would go for a spell.

“She’s had enough for the prep,” Freedman said.

“I think she’s just shown that she’s tapered off. She’s better than that but it’s good for them to still win when they are not at their best. Good horses tend to do that.”

Meanwhile, Rob Archibald came away without a winner at Rosehill on Saturday but received plenty of congratulations after his wife and co-trainer, Annabel, gave birth on Wednesday to their first child, a daughter, Margo. Rob said mum and baby were doing well.