Rustic set to relish Randwick mile return in The Ingham

He has been mixing his distances this campaign, but classy gelding Rustic Steel will return to arguably his favourite trip as he bids to give trainer Kris Lees back-to-back victories in The Ingham.

The seven-year-old has won half of his six starts over a mile and Lees expects him to relish extending to the journey in Saturday’s The Ingham (1600m) at Randwick after a sound fifth behind Briasa in The Hunter (1300m) last month.

That effort came nine days after Rustic Steel took out the Ladies Day Cup (1500m) at Hawkesbury and Lees admitted the distance drop took the edge off his charge’s finishing sprint.

“He still ran well, but it was always a risk coming back in trip with a quick turnaround,” Lees said.

“He will head to The Ingham and he’ll run well. It has been the logical target for him this time in.”

Rustic Steel was beaten less than three lengths by stablemate Loch Eagle in the corresponding race last year and is proven over the Randwick mile as the winner of the 2022 Big Dance (1600m).

While The Ingham will be his first time at the races in almost a month, he has been kept up to the mark with a recent barrier trial win on Newcastle’s Beaumont track and will have the services of Josh Parr, who partnered him at Hawkesbury.

Stablemate Gobi Desert finished third in an 800m heat at the same trial session and is set to take her place in the $500,000 Inglis Nursery (1000m) for the two-year-olds.

An impressive debut winner of the Max Lees Classic (900m) at Newcastle, the Too Darn Hot filly is a half-sister to Lees’ dual Group 1 winner In Her Time and three-time winner Glowing Red, and is proving quicker to mature than both her siblings.

“In Her Time didn’t race this early. Both the family have taken a little bit of time and she is a bit more precocious, that could be the Too Darn Hot side of things,” Lees said.

“She will probably go to the Inglis Nursery and she’s a filly I’ve got a bit of time for.”