Rivellino may not be among the fancied runners in the Golden Rose, but trainer Kris Lees is convinced the colt is trending the right way toward his spring objectives.
He lines up in Saturday’s $1 million Rosehill feature following a first-up fourth to Raging Force in the San Domenico Stakes (1100m) and a midfield finish behind Tempting in the Run To The Rose (1200m).
“His runs have certainly got pass marks with a view that 1400 and maybe even a mile this preparation is going to be more to his liking,” Lees said.
“First-up he stepped slow and had to give away a big start and second-up it was an advantage to be up on speed, which doesn’t suit his racing style.”
As a juvenile, Rivellino stamped himself as one of the better colts of his crop, stringing together three straight wins including the Group 2 Skyline Stakes (1200m).
He then stormed home for an unlucky fourth in the Golden Slipper (1200m) before finishing fifth, beaten less than a length, in the ATC Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m).
Drawn the outside barrier in Saturday’s nine-horse field, Lees believes Rivellino’s prospects hinge heavily on the race tempo.
“How the track plays at Rosehill we won’t know until the day but a genuine tempo will be to his liking,” he said.
“We were hoping he would aim up at the shorter trips but we’ve always thought he was a 1400-metre to a mile horse.
“He will probably go to the Caulfield Guineas after this. That’s the indication he is giving us.”
Elsewhere in the stable, last-start winner Changingoftheguard was entered for the Colin Stephen Quality (2400m), but Lees opted to bypass that and head straight to the Group 1 Metropolitan (2400m) next week.
Saturday’s Colin Stephen will still feature a Lees runner with Cleveland taking his place. The stayer was fourth behind his stablemate when resuming in the City Tattersall’s Club Cup (2400m) on September 6.
“Cleveland is a good horse when he’s right,” Lees said.
“He has been out of the winner’s stall for a while but he had a good autumn with his two runs and he seems to be coming up well.”
Cleveland’s most recent victory came in the 2023 Moonee Valley Cup (2500m), when he defeated 2019 Melbourne Cup champion Vow And Declare.
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