Andrea Leek is still contemplating the spring plans for Cosmic Crusader, but she is looking forward to seeing him race for the first time this Saturday.
The Group 1-winning Western Australian gelding will debut in Victoria in the $200,000 Group 3 Bletchingly Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield.
The Bob and Sandra Peters-owned five-year-old gelding has joined Leek’s stable from Perth’s leading trainer Michael Grantham, who prepared Cosmic Crusader for his Northerly Stakes win last year. Leek is very pleased with the horse’s transition to his new Victorian environment.
“I think he loves it,” Leek said. “He seems very happy and we’re just looking forward to seeing what he can do on Saturday. It’s a bit short of his (best) distance, but you’ve got to start somewhere and it just looked like a nice starting point.”
Leek mentioned that no specific major spring target has been identified for the horse, who arrived in Victoria considered by many to be the best galloper from WA, with Peters keen to see his performance this weekend.
The son of Maurice was unable to gain a start in Perth’s most prestigious race, the Group 1 Railway Stakes (1600m), but was a dominant winner of the Listed Carbine Club Stakes (1400m) on the same day, followed by a victory in the Group 1 Northerly Stakes (1800m) on December 6.
He then dropped back to 1400m for the Group 3 Gold Rush seven days later, where he was narrowly defeated by Victorian sprinter Rey Magnerio.
Cosmic Crusader has not raced over 1200m since winning at Ascot in October 2024, his second win from three starts at the distance. He heads into the Bletchingly Stakes off one Victorian jumpout, finishing second to Pop Award at Caulfield on July 1.
“He had the one jumpout at Caulfield, just to give him a look at it,” Leek stated. “I was really happy with it, very happy.”
Cosmic Crusader was one of 13 nominations for the weight-for-age Bletchingly Stakes. Potential rivals include Monash Stakes winners Winnasedge and Recommendation (the 2024 winner), the classy Zou Sensation, and Group 2-winning mare Miraval Rose.
The Bletchingly Stakes is shaping up to be a competitive affair, and punters are already checking the racing odds at various bookmakers.
