Hay Presto, it might be another Hay List
Michael Hawkes remembers standing in the race-day stalls at Eagle Farm, admiring Hay List.
Team Hawkes had ventured north with Tatt's Cup favourite Rainbow Styling, and powerhouse sprinter Hay List and his trainer John McNair were stabled next door.
"I remember John McNair looking at Rainbow Styling and saying something like, 'he looks pretty good', and I remember telling John, 'don't worry about that, your horse looks pretty fair, too'," Hawkes said.
"Hay List came out that day and won the Healy Stakes by five lengths. I thought that day, 'yep, you're a superstar, he won, and he kept on winning."
Today, Team Hawkes will send around Hay List's little brother, Hay Presto, at Randwick.
While Hay List won three Group 1s, almost $2.6 million in prizemoney — and forever gave Black Caviar a run for her money — Hay Presto can open his account with a modest $23,025 should he salute in an 1100m Kensington maiden.
"Even though this bloke is Hay List's brother, he's got a long, long, long way to go," Hawkes said.
"At the moment he's a nice horse going forward. He's still learning, he'll improve with time, and whatever he does this preparation he'll only keep improving.
"He's drawn the right barrier to get a good run, and hopefully he can hit the line strongly.
"I wouldn't be surprised if he won, but he'd need everything to go right for him."
Siblings of famous horses always attract plenty of interest when they debut, and Hay Presto is no different.
Hay List became a cult hero because of his tough efforts over the sprint trips, and the fact he was one of the few speedsters who truly tested Black Caviar.
The Davenport family raced Hay List, and now have Hay Presto, a three-year-old full brother to the champ by Statue Of Liberty out of Sing Hallelujah.
Team Hawkes, who welcomed the horse after he was initially prepared by Tim Martin, felt the horse needed to be gelded if he was to be a racehorse, and the Davenports agreed.
While Hay List was a heavy horse and noted frontrunner, Hawkes said Hay Presto was "a good cut of a horse" who would settle in the race where he was happy.
Meanwhile, Hawkes said Nostradamus and Bugatty were both well ahead of Saturday's feature San Domenico Stakes, with the former tuning up for the Rosehill assignment with a Hawkesbury trial win on Monday.
"He only does what he has to do, he's a pretty casual horse, and he knows when it's race day," Hawkes said.
As for the virus suffered by Golden Slipper winner Mossfun, which has forced the filly to delay her spring assault, Hawkes said it would be up to her when — or if — she returned this preparation.
"The temperature lingered, she's in the paddock at the moment, and it's up to her now," Hawkes said.
"If she comes right, we'll look at something like the Coolmore (Stud Stakes), and if she's not right and it takes longer, well at least we've still got a horse."
Story: Chrisitian Nicolussi Daily Telegraph
Photo: Adam Ward