Guest House on target for Golden Rose glory
Despite a somewhat unconventional path, Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr are optimistic that Guest House is peaking at the right moment for the Golden Rose.
Moments after jockey Zac Lloyd put the Golden Slipper victor through his paces at Rosehill's trackwork on Tuesday, the horse drew barrier five for Saturday's $1 million Group 1 contest, which has drawn a field of 13 competitors.
This Saturday's Golden Rose will represent only the second outing this preparation for Guest House, following his track-record-breaking triumph in the Group 3 San Domenico Stakes (1100m) at Rosehill on August 29.
The son of Home Affairs required some recuperation following that initial run, prompting Price and Kent to abandon their planned second start in the Group 2 Run To The Rose (1200m). They are now pleased with his resurgence in the lead-up to the Golden Rose.
Kent is drawing encouragement from the stable's 2022 victory with Jacquinot, as Guest House prepares for his challenge this weekend.
"I think it was a very wise decision to skip the Run To The Rose," Kent stated.
"The horse was clearly quite forward in condition and the fact that he could run a track record first up showed that.
"We won with a similar training pattern with Jacquinot in the Golden Rose; he won the McNeil on the same weekend (as the San Domenico) and went four weeks in.
"If he runs to his best and he gets the 1400 metres, he's the one to beat for sure."
The racing public appears to agree, with Guest House installed as the firm favourite ahead of Warwoven, the victor of the Run To The Rose. Warwoven drew the inside barrier, supplanting the highly-regarded colt St Gotthard as the second favourite after the latter drew gate nine.
Guest House is aiming to etch his name in history in the Golden Rose, a race that has held Group 1 status since 2009. In that period, no Golden Slipper winner has gone on to claim the Golden Rose, which has ascended to become one of Australia's most prestigious races for three-year-olds. The best performance by a Slipper winner in the Golden Rose since 2009 was Fireburn's fifth placing behind Jacquinot.
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