James McDonald believes Everest-bound Invincible Star can lay a marker in The Shorts at Randwick on Saturday, but whether that is enough to get him to stay with the sprinter for next month’s $13 million sweepstakes remains to be seen.
McDonald was in the saddle for Invincible Star's return in the Concorde Stakes when Everest champion Redzel was too good for her a couple of weeks ago. He expects a quantum leap in peformance, from what most consider a fading third, with the benefit of her first run in 10 months.
Redlining: Redzel kicks clear of Invincible Star in the Concorde Stakes.
“She's significantly improved from that first-up run and this will be a different race at 1100m,” McDonald said. “The big boy got her last time but you have to remember she had had a lot of time off. She is going to be a lot stronger from that run.
“She needs to lift her colours in terms of The Everest and I think she will.
“She led last time but there is so much speed in this race I can see her getting a trail. There was a bit of talk how keen she was to gallop, but I felt she would have come back if I wanted her to.
“It is just her style, she looks as if she is going hard but is doing it easily.”
Invincible Star, which was runner-up to Merchant Navy in the Coolmore Stud Stakes last spring, is one of four Everest slot-holders in The Shorts. She will once again be faced with Redzel, Brave Smash, which was third in The Everest last year, and English.
The race will undoubtedly again reshape The Everest market, a month from the richest sprint in the world.
McDonald is in the box seat to pick up one of the four remaining rides in The Everest with no jockey booked for ATC’s horse Nature Strip, English or Invincible Star, while slot-holder Max Whitby has yet to name the final contender.
“There are still four rides out there, so I could get one of them, if not I could go to Melbourne where there are four group 1s on Caulfield Guineas day,” McDonald said. "We will just wait and see."
The ride on English is up for grabs with Tim Clark riding the crack mare on Saturday but committed to Shoals in The Everest. The other jockeys in the mix would be Tommy Berry and Brenton Avdulla, who rides at Flemington on Saturday.
McDonald leads the Sydney jockeys' premiership and has another strong book of rides and looks forward to getting back on Pierata in the Bill Ritchie Handicap after a setback.
“The Missile win was very good and I think he will be much better at this trip of 1400m,” McDonald said. “There are going to be quite a few scratchings, which makes the outside draw not as bad and I think you will see a fairly smart horse.”
He rides the emerging Madam Rogue in the Tea Rose Stakes. She has won two of her three starts, including sitting wide and winning at a Canterbury midweek meeting first-up.
“She has got a bit of quality about her and felt like a stakes horse doing that last time,” he said. “I have a lot of time for her and even though these are a good group of mares, I think she is right up with the best of them.”
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