Uncertainty over Jimmysstar in TJ Smith Stakes after Caulfield mishap
Ciaron Maher, the trainer, remains undecided on entering Jimmysstar for day one of The Championships since the speedster sustained dual black eyes on his seasonal reappearance at Caulfield.
Jimmysstar was seventh when sent off as the hot fancy in the William Reid Stakes (1200m) March 21 and took in some Caulfield dirt en route.
The handler prefers to watch the gelding breeze once more before declaring for the TJ Smith Stakes (1200m) over Randwick's track this coming Saturday.
From the ocular injuries, the sprinter healed rapidly within two days and headed north to Sydney last week, where he eased through a soft canter Saturday.
While Maher refrained from excuses regarding the showing, he acknowledged its puzzling nature.
If Jimmysstar contests the TJ Smith, regular pilot Ethan Brown resumes the mount post Mark Zahra's Caulfield steer.
Tentyris gets the call from Zahra in the Saturday Group 1 showdown.
"We'll see how he works," Maher said.
"I don't really like making excuses, but Mark said he got sort of terrorised. He is a horse that does his own thing a bit, bridles up.
"I didn't mind him being on the inside, but he jumped, got hit straight out of the barrier. He was wanting to get out, but he got pushed back in and then at the furlong got a decent bump as well.
"I don't like making excuses and Mark is a pretty straight shooter, and he was like 'nothing went right'.
"I was very happy going in, but I'm a little bit on the fence (afterwards)."
Beyond the eye damage, Maher indicated Jimmysstar pulled up devoid of additional problems from the contest.
The trainer also announced that yardmate Tempted avoids the TJ Smith Stakes, targeting the Arrowfield 3YO Sprint (1200m) at Randwick April 11.
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