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Peter Snowden believes we still haven’t seen the best of brilliant filly Guelph and wouldn’t be at all surprised to see her dominate on the world stage.
The three-year-old made it Group 1 win number four and second in succession, toying with her rivals in Wednesday’s $500,000 Thousand Guineas at Caulfield.
And Snowden, who has dominated this season’s three-year-old Classics, claims there’s more Group 1 glory to be had with the daughter of Exceed And Excel.
“She’s just a very special filly to have. They don’t come along very often and it’s just an honour to train a horse with that much ability,” he told The Roar.
“As far as fillies go, she’s right up there with the best. We had one a couple of years back called Forensics, she was a very special filly. This filly is different to her but she oozes quality and she’s still very young.
“Her record is fantastic and there’s still more to come from her. The world is her oyster.”
Guelph started Wednesday’s 1600m Classic as the shortest-priced favourite in the history of race, eclipsing the support for champions Alinghi, Miss Finland and Atlantic Jewel, before her.
Punters believed she was far superior to her opposition based on decisive victories in the Group 2 Tea Rose Stakes over 1400m and the Group 1 Flight Stakes over a mile, both at Randwick.
And Snowden admitted those who took the short quote never had any cause for concern.
“We rode her with a touch of arrogance [on Wednesday] but we had the best horse in the race and knowing she runs a strong mile we had no hesitation when she jumped well to go to the front,” said Snowden.
“She’s never lead before but controlled the race from the front and won as she liked.”
Guelph’s triumph capped a stunning five days for the famous maroon and white silks, which saw them bag three Group 1 wins during that period.
“It’s been fantastic, one of those times where everything has fallen into place and it’s great for the stable,” the trainer added.
And it doesn’t look like Darley’s domination will abate any time soon.
Long John, Snowden’s impressive Caulfield Guineas winner, will take on the big guns in the Cox Plate at Moonee Valley on October 26.
And Snowden is of the opinion the quantum leap in class won’t pose any problems for the three-year-old son of Street Cry.
“He’s just a talented horse. He’s just one of those horses that’s crept under the radar a bit and keeps on improving,” he said.
“He’s won six from eight and was very unlucky to get beaten in one other one so should be seven from eight. To have form like that tells you he’s above average.
“The Cox Plate probably is our toughest weight-for-age race we have in Australia so it’s a huge ask for a three-year-old. I’m really happy with the way the horse has come through his run (in the Guineas) so it’s worth a shot.”
Snowden is never one to shy away from a challenge, sending another of his Caulfield Guineas winners, Helmet, to the same race in 2011.
Helmet finished a disappointing eighth of 14, beaten just over four lengths. However, the master handler isn’t concerned history will repeat itself.
“This horse is different to Helmet. Looking back, reflecting on it, Helmet had a really hard run when he won his [Caulfield] Guineas [in 2011]. I thought he would run well [in the Cox Plate] but he didn’t run 2000m,” he added.
“There’s just something about this bloke (Long John). He keeps pulling something out and you don’t know until you try.
“It’s not an afterthought. His preparation has been all about if things worked out this could happen next and it’s all happened that way so it’s fallen into place for him.”
Completing Darley’s champion crop of three-year-olds is Complacent, who’s progressed from a maiden to Group 1 winner in the space of a month.
At just his fifth race start, the son of Authorized tasted success at the highest level, easily accounting for a quality field in the Spring Champion Stakes over 2000m at Randwick on October 12.
And Snowden explained that he’s always had a high opinion of the colt and isn’t one bit surprised by his rapid rise to stardom.
“The preparation we gave him was because he showed quite a bit at home and the first two starts in maiden company were good, excellent runs,” said Snowden.
“He was very dominant late [in the Spring Champion]. He’s improved again, come through the run in tremendous order.
“There’s no question in my mind not to go further with him. The question now is whether I give him another run before the mile-and-a-half Derby or whether we keep him three weeks into that.
“The signs are telling me we should run him again but I’ll be down in Melbourne next week to have a good look at him and make a decision then.”
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