Sovereign Hill Seeks Metropolitan Glory at Rosehill After Setbacks
In the world of horse racing, patience is a virtue, and for the connections of one-time Golden Gift favorite Sovereign Hill, that virtue has been put to the test. However, they are now hoping to be rewarded with a Saturday metropolitan victory at Rosehill Racecourse.
The Written Tycoon colt made a strong impression when he set a class record in one of the first two-year-old races of the season at Warwick Farm. Co-trainer Adrian Bott quickly declared the stable’s intention to tackle bigger goals with the talented youngster.
Unfortunately, those plans did not come to fruition as setbacks ruled Sovereign Hill out of the Golden Gift and stymied attempts to get him to the Inglis Millennium. “He went shin sore a few times, and we had to bide our time,” Bott said prior to Sovereign Hill’s first-up run.
Bott expressed the frustration of having to repeatedly pull the horse out of big-race contention, saying, “After that first race, he went to Golden Gift favorite, and we had to tip him out, then he came back and was favorite for one of the Inglis races, and we had to tip him out again.”
Sovereign Hill’s return to the racetrack was not without its challenges, as he struggled on the heavy ground when finishing seventh to Pisces at Newcastle. However, the colt rebounded on a better surface, finishing second to the promising Emirate over 1300m at Rosehill.
The horse who finished third in that race, Mr Artemisia, is on the third line of betting for Saturday’s Group 1 JJ Atkins (1600m) in Brisbane, and Bott is expecting the form to stack up. “He appreciated getting out in trip, and he was just beaten by a better horse on the day,” Bott said of Sovereign Hill’s Rosehill effort.
Looking ahead to Saturday’s race, Bott believes the 1400m distance will be ideal for Sovereign Hill. “I’d like to think the 1400 is ideal for him, and he’ll be very competitive,” the trainer said. “It’s an important race for him to back up the opinion we’ve had of him. We haven’t set anything too high yet, we will see what Saturday brings and where he can be placed off the back of that.”
Adam Hyeronimus, who partnered Sovereign Hill to his debut success, will be reunited with the colt at Rosehill, and the pair will be aiming for their second win together.
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