If seasoned stayer Huetor can prevail in the The Beauford at Newcastle, it will not only underline Peter Snowden’s exceptional horsemanship, but also highlight the remarkable durability of the gelding himself.
Huetor’s career has twice been on the brink, first due to a dangerous eye infection in 2022 that required two precision surgeries, and then from a severe tendon laceration sustained during last year’s Caulfield Cup.
“He got galloped on in the Caulfield Cup last year near the 1800-metre mark, really badly,” Snowden said.
“When he came back in, we saw all this blood down his leg and to see the tendon, it was a horrible sight.
“The vet said, ‘we’ll save him, but he will never race again’.
“He has been through the wars, but he keeps coming back.”
Although Snowden managed to nurse Huetor back from the Caulfield Cup injury, the gelding’s first three starts this campaign were well below expectations, raising fears that the comeback effort had been in vain.
In a decisive move, Snowden added blinkers, and Huetor showed renewed spark with a strong fourth-place finish in the Rosehill Gold Cup (2000m), earning his place in Saturday’s The Beauford (2300m).
“That was his last chance. I said to the owners, ‘if he doesn’t do something today, I don’t want to keep sending him around finishing where he is. I’ll look after him. Give him to me and I’ll look after him forever’,” Snowden said.
“Low and behold, he bounced out and did what he did.
“It’s not the perfect race for him but I’m keen to run him because his work is great and he’s going well.”
Snowden also saddles the favourite Grand Prairie in the Spring Stakes (1600m), with the Group 3 winner looking well-suited under the set-weights scenario.
Grand Prairie struggled going anti-clockwise at Flemington during the carnival but had been performing admirably against Sydney’s elite three-year-olds beforehand.
“He’s just got to get a mile. That’s the only box he’s got to tick,” Snowden said.
“But he’s such a relaxed horse and he has such a big action, I’m fairly confident he will run it out.”
For punters looking at The Beauford and Spring Stakes markets, compare odds via the JHR bookmakers page.
