Kembla Grange trainer Kerry Parker will have double the hope with two runners in the upcoming $5 million King Charles III Stakes (1600m) at Royal Randwick.
Both of his prized possessions Think It Over and Hope In Your Heart will be running in the race up against the class of Zaaki, Fangirl and Mr Brightside.
For Think It Over, beating Zaaki is something that the 2022 Queen Elizabeth Stakes winner has done more recently in the million dollar 7 Stakes race where he ran over Annabel Neasham's Zaaki late in the fold.
Ever since the 7 Stakes in September Parker's plan has been preparing him for the King Charles.
The eight-year-old gelding did have a delayed recovery after trailing at Rosehill on October 3, but Parker told the Mercury that is was never something that was going to rule him out of the major race.
"He was alright. He was always going to run last in the trial," Parker said.
"He was never going there to be running 33 chasing Everest horses. He was just going there for a day out. He just had a bit of a slow recovery. But he did travel up in the heat and got caught up in a bit of traffic there before the trial and everything, which is all I put that down to.
"But I wasn't concerned with his gallop at all. Those guys are a couple of weeks away from an Everest and I'm already fit and 100 per cent. I just needed a day out and my instructions to [jockey] Nash [Rawiller] were to not be chasing those guys."
Think It Over suffered a nearly career-ending tendon injury in Spring of 2022 and the win at the 7 Stakes marked his return from the scare.
"He's just doing everything right. He's just a proper racehorse and loves his racing," he said.
"He's going into this race really good. He's a last start winner of the 7 Stakes. He's in the right spot."
The Kembla trainer added that he did have in the back of his mind that his five-year-old mare Hope In Your Heart could also feature in the King Charles as well as Think It Over.
"It was always in the plan that if she didn't go to Melbourne she'd probably run in this," Parker added.
"And the owners have opted to stay here towards to the Five Diamonds. It's a perfect race for her. It gives her a chance. No doubt she's got to step up but all in all she's going along terrific."
Think It Over is currently paying $13 for the win via Bet365 whilst Hope In Your Heart is $34 at the time of writing. The favourites for the race are Mr Brightside ($2.30), Fangirl ($14) and Zaaki ($9).
The race is set to get underway at 5:35pm. Before that will be the $20 million Everest (1200m), at 4:15pm.
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Jordan Warren
From the Illawarra my whole life, I have a passion for sports writing. Favourite sports include football, cricket and rugby league. Career highlights include covering the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2022 UCI Cycling World Championships in Wollongong. I cover a range of sports, mainly football, but have written about rugby league, rugby union, racing, basketball, volleyball, Aussie Rules, cricket, mixed martial arts plus more. Particularly enjoy providing the latest updates to local fans of the Wolves, Illawarra Premier League (men's and women's) as well as the District League.
From the Illawarra my whole life, I have a passion for sports writing. Favourite sports include football, cricket and rugby league. Career highlights include covering the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2022 UCI Cycling World Championships in Wollongong. I cover a range of sports, mainly football, but have written about rugby league, rugby union, racing, basketball, volleyball, Aussie Rules, cricket, mixed martial arts plus more. Particularly enjoy providing the latest updates to local fans of the Wolves, Illawarra Premier League (men's and women's) as well as the District League.
