She Will Reign has made it to base camp with ease, but part owner Michael Tobin knows the biggest climb remains ahead of the dazzling filly.
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The star three-year-old has reached the summit in virtually every challenge she’s been set so far, but a date with the $10 million The Everest in less than a fortnight will undoubtedly be her toughest.
It’s something Tobin, who owns a 5% share of the Golden Slipper winner, is well aware of.
But after watching She Will Reign gun down rivals in last Friday’s Group 1 Moir Stakes at Moonee Valley, the Gwynneville resident also believes it’s well within her reach.
“It gives us a lot of confidence,” Tobin said after the Moir triumph.
“Gary [Portelli] is convinced she is the absolute real deal now. She is back in Sydney and is good as gold.
“She only lost 10kgs and travelled really well so that’s great. She is really happy and is right up on her toes.”
She Will Reign is now the $4.60 favourite with TAB for The Everest after her win in the Moir. Tobin travelled down to Melbourne to watch her slashing performance at the Valley and was still in awe of the filly’s display when talking to The Punt on Tuesday.
She Will Reign surged down the outside in the Group 1 feature to pip Lloyd Kennewell’s Viddora in a thrilling photo finish.
“I was pretty close to the finish and thought she had got it so was going ballistic,” Tobin said.
“All our mob were as quiet as church mice and I was dancing around like an idiot. After the replay they were doing the same.
“The celebrations went long into the night. There were a few sore heads the next morning.”
She Will Reign’s victory was made all the more impressive after she came from off the speed on a track which favoured the leaders on the night.
In her first start as a three-year-old, She Will Reign left the barriers slowly and looked to be under pressure a long way from home against a field of top grade sprinters.
“She had no luck,” Tobin said.
“At Moonee Valley you need luck over 1000m. It is a really tight little course and against the top line sprinters you really need luck in the run. She jumped a little bit in the air at the start and [jockey] Kerrin McEvoy thought at the 200m mark that he didn’t have a hope in the race.
“When he got to the outside, Terravista gave her a good bump. She got unbalanced and had to go wide on the home turn.
“Once she got balanced at the top of the straight, Kerrin said he knew he had them.
“She sailed down the outside and got them.”
