General Salute faces tough handicap in The Hunter

Co-trainer Gerald Ryan has indicated that General Salute is carrying a significant weight in the upcoming $1 million The Hunter at Newcastle, a consequence of his reliable performances, but insists the gelding is looking in superb order.

The dual Group 3 victor, General Salute, has been allocated 59kg. This places him just two kilograms behind the top-weighted Pericles, who boasts a Group 1 win and five Group 2 victories on his record.

"The weights, they haven't missed him," Ryan stated.

"He's got a benchmark rating of 111 and he's only won a Group Three race. He hasn't even won a Group Two. With these benchmarks, there's five benchmark points between him and Pericles, and I know it's a quality handicap, but that's supposed to be two-and-a-half kilos difference, and there's only two. Then when you look at the other horses that are supposed to be two-and-a-half kilos less than us, they are."

"(But) he looks well, probably the best I've seen him look. Big, strong. He's going really well."

Following a successful first-up run in the Bill Ritchie Handicap (1400m), General Salute demonstrated his tenacity with a fifth-place finish in the Alan Brown Stakes (1400m) on October 10. A brief spell at a farm followed, after which he resumed training for Saturday's lucrative $1 million The Hunter (1300m) event.

This approach, involving periodic breaks and farm stays, has been a successful strategy for Ryan and his co-trainer Sterling Alexiou, with General Salute showing consistent form, having only finished outside the placings twice in his last thirteen starts.

"We always space his runs," Ryan elaborated. "After he had his last start we sent him to the farm and the water walker for ten days, which we've done a few times, and aimed to bring him back for this race fresh-up. That's why he's been able to have an extended program. He gets lots of little holidays."

The ride on General Salute, who will start from barrier 10 in the 16-horse field plus six emergencies, has been assigned to jockey Tim Clark.

The prestigious race is expected to mark the final career start for the veteran nine-year-old gelding, Coal Crusher. Coal Crusher, a two-time winner of The Hunter in 2023 and 2025, is set to compete at the Newcastle meeting for the fifth consecutive year.

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