The late Mike Moroney always believed The Pendragon had the talent to make an impact in Australia, and the gelding will get another chance to prove it when he resumes at Moonee Valley this weekend.

A Group 2 winner in New Zealand, The Pendragon also finished runner-up to high-class mare Orchestral in the Karaka Millions before crossing the Tasman for a tilt at the Group 1 Australian Guineas. However, after a long preparation that stretched from October 2023 through to March, he failed to fire in Melbourne.

He returned for a spring campaign under Moroney and Glen Thompson but again couldn’t deliver, and after another spell he has now been transferred into the care of the Lindsay Park training partnership of Ben, Will and J D Hayes following Moroney’s passing earlier this year.

The gelding is set to make his first start for the Hayes brothers in Saturday’s Listed Chautauqua Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley.

“We’ve only had him this preparation and he’s been going well,” Ben Hayes said. “The 1200 (metres), he has run well over in New Zealand. I think it’s a nice race for him to kick off in. The small field will enable him to balance up and hopefully hit the line and surprise us.

“He seems like a horse that has got a bit of speed. He’s been down at our Pakenham base and we’re looking forward to seeing how he goes. He was a Group 2 winner in New Zealand, but he hasn’t quite fired here. He hasn’t shown us any reason why he could not recapture that form and he may have adapted a bit better here now.”

The Pendragon’s New Zealand form lines tie in strongly with some of Australasia’s best, having twice defeated Mark Walker’s mare Quintessa, including in the Group 2 Auckland Guineas (1400m), while also finishing behind New Zealand Derby and Vinery Stud Stakes heroine Orchestral in the Karaka Millions.

Punters will be watching closely to see if The Pendragon can finally transfer his New Zealand form to Australia, with odds on the Chautauqua Stakes available through leading betting sites.