The Golden Slipper awaits All Too Hard
There was a Black Caviar moment at Rosehill Gardens yesterday - and now the Golden Slipper awaits.
All Too Hard, the younger half-brother of the world's best sprinter Black Caviar, was the talk of the track after a stunning Sydney debut win over the Slipper course yesterday.
Rival trainers and jockeys were left shaking their heads in disbelief after All Too Hard toyed with his rivals in the Group 2 $175,000 Pago Pago Stakes (1200m), winning without raising a sweat and in a manner so reminiscent of the great Black Caviar.
"An absolute star," said trainer David Payne as he watched All Too Hard cruising home to win easily.
"What's that horse's name?" said jockey Corey Brown tongue-in-cheek after he rode Le Cap to finish only seventh behind All Too Hard. But trainer John Hawkes refused to immediately commit All Too Hard to a start in the $3.5 million Golden Slipper on Saturday.
"We don't have to make a decision on the Golden Slipper today, we've got until Tuesday," Hawkes said. "Let's see how he pulls up first; we are keeping all our options open."
All Too Hard ($1.35 favourite) made it three wins from as many starts with one of the easiest big-race wins imaginable, easing right down to a jog over the line with a length to spare from Narcissus ($21) and with nearly two lengths to Limes ($61).
His win was so impressive TAB Sportsbet fixed odds immediately elevated All Too Hard to equal Golden Slipper favouritism at $3 with Blue Diamond winner Samaready.
Hawkes, who bought All Too Hard for $1.025 million at the Inglis Easter Sales last year for owner Nathan Tinkler, will find it almost impossible to pass up a chance to run the galloper in the Golden Slipper provided the colt comes through yesterday's race in good order.
Jockey Dwayne Dunn, who has won four Blue Diamonds and can talk with authority about top-class two-year-olds, did his job perfectly by easing right down on All Too Hard when the race was safely in the colt's keeping.
"John (Hawkes) told me before the race that our number one ambition was to win the race first and then we can worry about next week," Dunn said. "I've ridden some very good two-year-olds like Nadeem, who was boxing with Miss Finland in their two-year-old season, and I thought was better than her until he got injured, but All Too Hard is potentially better than all of them.
"I actually think he has a bit better turn of foot than Black Caviar - she has a killer furlong (200m) from the 600m when she rolls into her races, gets the others off the bit and puts them to the sword.
"But this bloke is a push-button type. He has the ability to reel off an incredible sectional, which is what he did today. He got back a long way and I was a little worried when we were forced very wide on the turn but he had them covered in a couple of strides.
"I'm not sure what the Hawkes camp will do about next week but, put it this way, I'd like to be coming back here to ride him."
Only three youngsters have completed the Pago Pago Stakes-Golden Slipper double: Inspired (1984), Rory's Jester (1985) and Stratum (2005) - but it is doubtful there has been a more impressive winner of yesterday's race than All Too Hard.
Hawkes has won Golden Slippers with Guineas (1997) and Forensics (2007) and did concede All Too Hard is the ideal type of two-year-old to cope with the pressure in the world's richest juvenile race.
It was interesting that All Too Hard's trainer and jockey both agreed the horse to beat in the Golden Slipper is still Samaready.
"Samaready is the best two-year-old, she is the benchmark," Hawkes said.
Dunn said: "She's won at Group 1 level and All Too Hard still has to get there."
Story: Ray Thomas Daily Telegraph
Photo: www.sportpix.com.au