Fresh from celebrating Coal Crusher’s victory in the $1 million The Hunter, Joe Pride has quickly turned his attention to the next major provincial prize, confirming Estadio Mestalla will be headed to next weekend’s running of The Gong (1600m).
The gelding caught the eye late at Newcastle, sweeping home down the outside to finish sixth behind his stablemate, a performance that left Pride eager to back him up.
“Estadio Mestalla was super coming down the outside late,” Pride said.
“He’ll run in The Gong.
“He’s got a very good record on the back-up.”
This time last year, Estadio Mestalla was unable to secure a start in The Gong but made the most of his opportunity by winning a benchmark-88 mile race on the undercard at Kembla Grange. Coal Crusher followed an almost identical route, claiming a benchmark race on The Hunter program in 2022 before returning the following spring to win the feature itself.
Pride believes the parallels between the two horses give Estadio Mestalla every chance to replicate Coal Crusher’s progression.
“He missed out last year and he won the consolation with about 62 kilos,” Pride said.
“Which is what Coal Crusher did before he won The Hunter. He won the benchmark race on the same day.”
Estadio Mestalla has already shown his versatility this campaign, resuming with a surprise 1100m win at Randwick on Melbourne Cup Day, despite never previously winning over a sprint trip. He tasted black-type success earlier in the preparation with victory in the Listed Winter Stakes (1500m) at Rosehill.
The stable has enjoyed a superb November, headlined by Ceolwulf’s Group 1 Champions Mile triumph and Coal Crusher’s emphatic success in The Hunter.
Estadio Mestalla sits among 35 entries for The Gong, with defending champion Gringotts and Duke De Sessa among the most notable potential rivals.
Anyone planning to bet on The Gong can compare markets and offers at Australia’s leading betting sites to secure the best value.