Stylish Lord Set for Strong Challenge in Aquanita Stakes
In the upcoming Listed Aquanita Stakes (2000m) at Belmont Racecourse this Saturday, trainer Russell Stewart is confident that his talented galloper Stylish Lord will be a strong contender for the win despite facing talented opposition.
Stewart’s confidence in Stylish Lord’s ability to outperform his nine rivals in the Aquanita Stakes is rooted in the horse’s impressive victory a week ago at Belmont, where he carried 60kg to success against older competitors over 1650m. The Playing God gelding enjoyed a smooth run along the fence before jockey Alan Kennedy were able to guide him to a neck victory.
“He’s going really good and I think he’s been looking for this,” Stewart told Races WA. “I thought he had a bit of an ask to win last week from where he was but he finished good.”
With plans for Stylish Lord to be ridden similarly by jockey Steven Parnham this Saturday, Stewart believes the step up to the 2000m distance of the Aquanita Stakes will suit the horse well. “There’s going to be genuine pace in this race and he’ll just tuck in,” the trainer said. “I’ll tell Steven Parnham to ride him like Alan did last Saturday.”
Stylish Lord has continued to impress in his training, with Stewart noting, “He had a good gallop on the grass Tuesday morning and worked nice. He’ll turn up fresh and bright on Saturday.”
The blinkers, which proved a successful gear change last week, will remain on Stylish Lord as he attempts to land the Aquanita Stakes – a race Stewart’s daughter-in-law, jockey Steven Parnham, has won twice before with God Has Spoken (2010) and Playing God (2011).
While Stylish Lord sits as the $4.40 second-favorite behind the $2.50 market-leader Cool Memory, Stewart is wary of the depth of talent in the Aquanita field. “Gee, there’s three or four horses in there with good chances,” he acknowledged, also highlighting Manzor Magic and the Guineas-placed Miro as potential dangers.
Nonetheless, with Stylish Lord’s strong recent form and the step up to 2000m, racing enthusiasts will be eager to see if the talented galloper can deliver Stewart a victory in the Listed Aquanita Stakes this Saturday at Belmont.
🔗 Source