Trial offers 2025 Winx Stakes warm-up for Sydney Cup winner

Bjorn Baker is preparing to showcase both established stars and rising prospects over the coming days, starting with the Rosehill barrier trials on Friday and continuing with a strong team at the races on Saturday.

Among Friday’s trial highlights will be Sydney Cup champion Arapaho, who will contest a 1000m heat before resuming in the Group 1 Winx Stakes (1400m) the following weekend. With targets including the Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup, the nine-year-old has been showing plenty of energy at home.

“He doesn’t look nine at home,” Hilton said. “He is European bred in terms of his age which helps. He looks great. He is very bright within himself and he’s in really good order.”

Joining Arapaho will be smart filly Within The Law, who is gearing up for her seasonal return in the Silver Shadow Stakes (1200m) on the Winx Stakes undercard.

Saturday’s Rosehill meeting will see Baker field 11 runners across six races, including consistent mare Perfumist in the Petaluma Handicap (1200m). With a near 50 per cent winning strike rate, she recently attended the races for a non-competitive outing to settle her into this campaign.

“She is a little bit highly strung so we wanted to give her a race day experience without racing,” Hilton said. “We’ve had a lot of success with it and we do it a lot with our horses. We actually had Within The Law (at the Randwick Kensington meeting on Wednesday) and it seems to work. They come here and they have a good experience. They haven’t been put under any pressure and when they come again, it’s not unfamiliar territory.”

Hilton will also look for an improved showing from Puntin in the Precise Air Handicap (1400m), with the gelding expected to appreciate both the drop in distance and a drier surface after a heavy 9 track rating on Thursday.

“He may not have handled the 1800 on a really heavy track,” he said. “I think he wants an improving track so hopefully there’s no more rain.”

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