Unless the rain comes, trainer Joe Pride is prepared to rest Tiger Tees despite his first-up Group Three win at Flemington.
Pride entered the Group One winner in the Missile Stakes at Randwick and the Aurie’s Star in Melbourne on Saturday and chose the latter hoping for a softer track.
Tiger Tees did not get his preferred surface but the Galaxy winner’s class got him over the line.
“It was great and I had a tear in my eye,” Pride said.
“When a plan comes off it’s always a pleasing result.
“I don’t mind if he doesn’t race again this spring.
“It’s all about the autumn with him and I’m not going to bang him around against the good sprinters on hard tracks.”
The win was another box ticked on Pride’s bucket list with the Aurie’s Star the trainer’s first straight track win.
“I’ve been trying to win a race down the straight since I took Red Oog there about 10 years ago,” Pride said.
Although Tiger Tees’ spring is uncertain, Pride has ambitious plans for his younger sibling Terravista.
“Terravista will trial on Friday at Warwick Farm and then come back in the Show County Quality on the 23rd,” he said.
“Then we will look at some bigger targets for him.”
A dual Group Three winner, Terravista has six wins from nine starts but unlike Tiger Tees, his successes have come on good and dead tracks.
Terravista could be joined in the Show County Quality (1200m) by Saturday’s Randwick winner Target In Sight.
A new acquisition for Pride, Target In Sight came to the stable when John O’Shea took up the position as head trainer for Sheikh Mohammed in Australia.
“We will look at all options for him,” Pride said.
“There are plenty of races for him including the Show County or the Bobbie Lewis in Melbourne in a few weeks.”
Pride was also pleased with the Missile Stakes effort of Laser Hawk who finished eighth of the nine runners, just 3-1/2 lengths from the winner Sweet Idea.
Trained by Gai Waterhouse to win the 2012 Rosehill Guineas, Laser Hawk was sidelined for more than a year with a tendon injury.
Pride said his next planned run was the Warwick Stakes (1400m) on August 23 where many of the Missile runners are headed.
