Trainer Gavin Bedggood is targeting the Caulfield Cup with Kingswood, but a Group 1 event at Caulfield must be navigated first.

The Might And Power (2000m) is designated as Kingswood’s final preparatory run ahead of the Caulfield Cup (2400m) scheduled for the following Saturday.

While securing victory in Saturday’s 2000m weight-for-age race would be ideal, particularly with the $600,000 prize purse, Bedggood indicated that his satisfaction would hinge on the imported galloper finishing strongly.

Kingswood was sent to New Zealand late last year, where he achieved Group 1 success. He subsequently had two more starts in the country before returning to Australia, where he has found form in his last two outings.

His return to racing saw him win over 1700m at Caulfield on August 29, and he followed this with a fourth-place finish in the Underwood Stakes (1800m) on September 19.

In that Underwood Stakes race, he finished behind Birdman, who will be an opponent again on Saturday, and Cosmic Crusader, who was a winner at Flemington last week.

Last time out, Kingswood was positioned among the leaders, and Bedggood expressed a desire for the horse to settle closer to midfield.

“I don’t want to see him ridden as close as he was last time. I don’t want to see him have a hard run up on speed,” Bedggood said.

“I’d love to see him settle third or fourth, getting a lovely run, and then banging the line.”

Bedggood views the upcoming Saturday race as a vital lead-up for Kingswood’s Caulfield Cup aspirations.

The trainer is confident in Kingswood’s ability to sustain his effort over the 2400m distance.

“He ran in a Zipping Classic at his only try at the trip, and the track went from a (good) four to a (heavy) nine on the day and it was too wet for him,” Bedggood said.

“I don’t think it was the mile-and-a-half, it was more the ground, so it is still a bit of question mark, but deep down, I don’t think it will be an issue.

“He beat St George on Melbourne Cup Day last year and he’s second favourite for the Caulfield Cup, so I don’t think there’s a lot between those two horses, and I take a gauge through that horses runs this campaign.

“There is also the option to take the winkers off him to get him to come back that peg or two if we need to next week.”

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