Chief Stipe Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 Craig Grylls was quick to reaffirm his standing with the Baker-Forsman stable when he produced a skilful rails ride on Qiji Express in the Mufhasa FastTrack Strakes at Ellerslie today. Two races earlier Grylls had erred when riding another from the champion Cambridge stable, Artiste, on the way to finishing fourth in the Nathans Memorial. He learnt from his mistake, however, this time sticking to the fence from his inside draw and slicing through with 150 metres to run for an easy win. “That’s what I should have done before, stay on the fence,” he admitted. “But at least I got it right this time, the fence was the place to be.” Qiji Express was lining up today for the first time since finishing eighth behind his stablemate Madison County in the New Zealand 2000 Guineas in early November. The son of Shamexpress reappeared nearly four months later as a gelding and his comprehensive performance suggested a bright future in sprinting races. “After he just got beaten in the Sarten Memorial we thought we could stretch him another furlong in the 2000 Guineas, but it wasn’t to be, he’s not a miler,” co-trainer Andrew Forsman said. “We’ll stick to sprinting with him now. The Cambridge Breeders’ Stakes at the end of next month is a race that should suit him.” Second place in today’s Listed three-year-old race went to She’s A Thief, who trailed fourth and fought all the way to the line to just hold out Tiger Silk. View the full article Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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