Bjorn Baker will wait until the barrier draw later this week before deciding on if he sends a team out to Wellington Race Club on Sunday.
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Group 1 winner and former Bathurst resident Baker has nominated two hopes for the $150,000 Wellington Boot two-year-old feature, while he's put eight horses in total forward for the bumper showcase meeting.
The Warwick Farm-based Baker took out last year's Boot with Miss Invincible, and this year Brazen Gem will be his main hope in the feature.
The filly showed promise when running second at Muswellbrook on debut last month but even despite that she is no certainty to race on Sunday.
"She'll have Greg Ryan riding her so we'll accept but we just won't be sure until the draw," Baker said after the Boot attracted 27 nominations.
If we go we'll send a few so we'll see how it looks and weight it up.
- Bjorn Baker
Van Giz, a filly by Written Tycoon from Witwatersrand, is Baker's other nomination for the Boot but having not made her debut yet she is unlikely to earn a start.
As well as those two for the Boot, Baker has nominated last-start winner Spencer and also Vega for the $100,000 Ian Giffin Wellington Cup (1700m).
He has also put forward the impressive Super Cyclone, D'Oro Rain, and Highly Desired for the Class 2 Handicap (1400m) and Korrawi for the Class 1 Handicap (1100m).
"If we go we'll send a few so we'll see how it looks and weight it up," Baker said.
"But I've had a couple in the Boot before and it was nice to win."
If Brazen Gem does take her spot in the Boot field, Baker fancies her chances.
Conditions weren't ideal at Muswellbrook but the Kiwi filly still ran a strong race on debut before finished second to the Brett Cavanough-trained Longbottom.
Longbottom has also been nominated for the Boot.
"She (Brazen Gem) got back and it was a wet track so she wasn't 100 percent comfortable," Baker said of the debut run.
"She'll appreciate a good track and Wellington should be that.
"She's a nice filly and acquitted herself well."
Boosting Brazen Gem's chances in the Boot is the booking of Ryan, someone Baker has combined with to great effect.
The pair have a stellar record at Bathurst, in particular, while the champion jockey piloted Miss Invincible to victory in the feature last year.
"He's got a great record. We've had a lot of winners and we'll get a lot more."
Also among the nominations for the Boot is hopes from the stables of leading trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, Peter and Paul Snowden, and Gary Portelli.Among the big names is also some more local hopes, with Dubbo trainer Clint Lundholm putting forward Harwok'N'Zoff.
Karen Lunn nominated Valen Galtero while Gulgong's Brett Thompson has Deviate, Denace, and Sniper Excels in the running.
The showcase meeting attracted a massive 210 nominations in total.
The Boot headlines the day, while the $100,000 cup, $50,000 Town Plate, and $35,000 KFC Kentucky Dash over 900m also garner plenty of interest.
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Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
