MARCO BOTTI feels there is more to come from his recent Listed winner Re Barolo.
The six-year-old, successful in stakes’ company for the first time at Lingfield on February 21, is due back at the Surrey venue for the Group 3 Winter Derby on Saturday March 21. And Green Ridge Stables’ trainer Botti believes his charge will strip sharper on the big day.
The recent inclement weather meant Re Barolo had to miss a couple of pieces of work in the lead-up to his seasonal reappearance and so connections felt he may be short of fitness. Botti explained: “He is a horse who takes quite a lot of work - he is so laid-back. I expect he will come on a lot for the race. He will be spot-on for the Winter Derby, which is the plan for him. “He has come out of his race well and ate up on Saturday night.”
It was a deserved first win at stakes level for Re Barolo, who previously came second in Listed company at Kempton as well as finishing an unlucky fourth in Lingfield’s Churchill Stakes last November. He had one further start in 2008 before being freshened up by Botti ahead of the 2009 campaign.
In Botti’s words, jockey John Egan rode him ‘patiently’ and it paid off as Re Barolo swept past all four of his rivals to score by a neck. “I was pleased he won - he is a tough horse,” summed up the trainer. |