Tivaci Out for Group One Glory

There is no question that Tivaci (pictured) looks on the brink of capturing the elusive Group 1 victory, and despite not being overly suited by the weight-forage-conditions, the son of High Chaparral is racing well enough to give the Emirates Stakes over 2000m at Flemington a decent shake.

“There are a couple of questions marks including the 2000m trip and how he will handle weight-for-age, but we couldn’t be happier with him,” trainer Mike Moroney said.

“You can’t knock his efforts of late and he just loves Flemington, so he certainly deserves a crack.”

Vengeur Masque will hope to put the disappointment of missing out on Tuesday’s cup race when he lines up in the Group 3 Queen Elizabeth Stakes over 2600m.

“He’s a very good chance and we think he’ll be hard to beat.”

“The tricky gate is our only concern, but he’s good enough to overcome that and we’re confident he’ll run a strong race.”

Alaskan Rose is another hoping to cap off some ultra-consistent form when she takes her spot in the Group 2 Matriarch Stakes over 2000m.

“She’s drawn nicely and we hope she can jump well enough to take advantage of the gate.”

“If she can get a soft run in transit, there’s no reason she cannot see out the 2000m strongly. After all she is Group placed over the trip.”

Moroney is looking for a sharp improvement from a horse he has always thought highly of in Loyalty Man who lines up in the Antler Luggage Handicap over 1600m.

“We took the blinkers off last start and we felt that was the reason behind his disappointing run,” Moroney said.

“He’s a much better horse than that and the blinkers have been re-applied today – so we’re expecting a big improvement.”