The primary winter focus for Future History has been the Tattersall’s Cup, and a victory in this event could elevate a start in the Melbourne Cup to a realistic aspiration.
The eight-year-old gelding, who featured in Australia’s most prestigious race in 2023, has shown excellent form this season, achieving three consecutive wins for his former trainer Ciaron Maher over the summer before a change of ownership saw him join Greg Hickman’s yard.
In his two starts under his new conditioner, he achieved a narrow fourth place in the Chairman’s Handicap (2000m) at Doomben and a third place in the Lord Mayor’s Cup (1800m) at Eagle Farm.
With these recent efforts, Future History is considered ready to perform at his best, though Hickman admits the powerful gelding required more work to reach peak fitness than initially projected.
“We’ve just had to learn a little bit about him,” Hickman explained. “When he came in, he was 600 kilos. I have worked him hard all week and he’s put on six kilos, so he’s a big boy. It has been a month between runs, but I did a fair bit with him Saturday week ago and his work was exceptional. Touch wood, everything has been perfect.”
Future History has proven his ability to win over distances up to 2800m, and Hickman anticipates he will enjoy the challenge of extending to 2400m in Saturday’s Tattersall’s Cup at Eagle Farm.
Although he is set to start from the outside gate in the eight-horse field, he did take up the running in his three staying triumphs during the summer. However, Hickman is content to leave the tactical decisions to jockey Nash Rawiller.
Future History was the slight $3.30 favourite ahead of Pounding ($3.40) on Thursday. A victory would prompt connections to firm up plans for a Melbourne Cup campaign in the spring.
“This race has been the main target this campaign,” Hickman stated. “If he was to race well on Saturday and then come home, he would have a freshen up and then go to Melbourne.”
The last three winners of the Melbourne Cup – Half Yours, Knight’s Choice, and Without A Fight – all concluded their campaigns with performances in Brisbane’s winter carnival.
Future History is a strong candidate for the Tattersall’s Cup, and you can find competitive betting sites for the event.
