Hawkes Racing chases late-season juvenile success

A minor communication issue nearly cost jockey Tyler Schiller the opportunity to properly gauge Gatineau in a recent barrier trial. However, any such mix-ups are expected to be avoided as the juvenile prepares for its debut at Rosehill.

Schiller found himself on Gatineau's stablemate, Blackbelt, who was competing in the same 900-metre heat on June 19. The error was only identified and corrected once the horses were at the starting gates.

"There was a bit of a mix-up, and I ended up on the other horse of the Hawkes' in the trial on the way to the gates," Schiller recounted. "Jay Ford was on the grey (Gatineau) going to the gates, and he'd been told to win the trial. I obviously wasn't told that, but I knew he was expected to go out there and perform well, so I just gave him a good experience."

Blackbelt ultimately finished second in the trial, with Gatineau coming home in fourth. Notably, Gatineau impressed as he closed strongly under his own steam, finishing just behind the placegetters.

While Gatineau faces a tougher assignment against more seasoned competitors in Saturday's Thank You ATC Members Handicap (1100m) at Rosehill, Schiller is confident in the colt's natural ability and is eager to see his race conditions performance.

"I thought his trial was terrific. He trucked up behind them well," Schiller said. "He's got plenty of ability. It will be interesting to see what he does when he gets a gap and hits the front, because I know sitting behind them on the bridle can be a different story."

If Gatineau can secure a victory, it would mark a strong conclusion to the season for Hawkes Racing's two-year-old contingent.

The stable had previously celebrated an impressive win by the All Too Hard colt Why So Hard at Randwick on June 6, and Marwooba followed suit with a win at Rosehill the subsequent week.

Schiller, who performs a significant amount of riding for John, Wayne, and Michael Hawkes in Sydney, stated that the late-season resurgence has not come as a surprise.

"We had a few early in the season that had setbacks with shin soreness and that sort of thing," he explained. "They've missed all the big races, but the team has been able to get the horses into races where they can knock off a two-year-old win before they turn three. The team has been going well of late, so hopefully we can keep up the momentum."

Schiller is also hopeful that the Jim and Greg Lee-trained gelding Glorious Moments can continue his winning trajectory when he makes his black-type debut in the Listed Winter Stakes (1400m). The gelding boasts four wins from seven starts and displayed significant toughness when winning under a heavy weight at Randwick last time out, adding excitement to the usual contenders in the feature sprint. "It's a quality field, so you can't say he's going to come out and be dominant, but I think he's a really good chance down in the weights," Schiller remarked.

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