Cairns Cup: Sharlee Hoffman confident in Maquereau
The biggest hurdle facing Maquereau in the pursuit of Cairns Cup glory is the massive 59kg the eight-year-old will be forced to carry around Cannon Park.
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THE biggest hurdle facing Maquereau in the pursuit of Cairns Cup glory is the massive 59kg the eight-year-old will be forced to carry around Cannon Park.
Maquereau will be top weight for the $150,000 feature on Saturday, and while he is no stranger to carrying near-on 60kg for a run, the biggest concern facing Sharlee Hoffman is how he will handle the 2100m distance.
He carried 59kg in the Townsville Cup a fortnight ago, running a decent sixth behind winner Namazu for Ricky Vale.
But it is a far cry from the 54kg he carried in last year’s Cairns Cup, when he ran second in the feature, just one length behind Janel Ryan’s Tutelage.
“He’s probably only slightly better off than he was this time last year, and we were only beaten by a couple of lengths,” Hoffman said.
“But it’s going to be a tough ask for my horse this year with the weight.
“That’s what’s going to get us.
“He’s carried 60kg before, but just how he handles it over the 2100m.”
With regular jockey Lacey Morrison unavailable, Hoffman will turn to Brad Pengelly for the ride, who will not only bring his experience to the saddle, but with his heavier riding weight will mean Maquereau will not need to carry any extra dead weight.
“He’s a really good jockey, he knows his form,” Hoffman said.
“He was actually happy to come up here just to ride him but we found him another ride.
“He’s been pestering me to ride this one for a while but we’ve always stuck with Lacey.”
Maquereau is one of eight horses Hoffman has nominated for Cairns Cup day.
Sylvester is first-up and could be among the leaders in the Lightning Open Handicap over 950m, with Cupid’s Son set to be tested in what is a jump in class for the six-year-old.
Hoffman also expects to see some good performances out of Starfilly (Class 4 HCP, 950m) and Heirborn (Class 6 Plate, 1250m), while Pengelly’s other engagement, Call Me Mo, will carry 59.5kg and could be one to watch in the Benchmark 58 HCP (1500m).
Maquereau, who has 10 wins and eight further placings in 41 career starts, has some decent recent form with two wins at Townsville over 1609m, carrying 59kg and 61kg respectively.
But, like so many trainers have said, Hoffman said she will need luck on her side - both before the meet, and when the starter’s gun sounds.
“The biggest thing is the weight, but you need a good barrier and a bit of luck on your side,” Hoffman said.
There are 19 nominations for the 2022 Cairns Cup:
MAQUEREAU (Sharlee Hoffman)
NAMAZU (Ricky Vale)
SOUTH PACIFIC (GB) (John Manzelmann)
BULLION WOLF (Les Gordy)
PLANET WARRIOR (Olivia Cairns)
QUALITY ASSET (Jared Wehlow)
RULE THE WORLD (Kerry Donnelly)
PLAY ME NOW (NZ) (Stephen Potiris)
LOVE EXPRESS (Trevor Rowe)
LOUIS JANUARY (Jared Wehlow)
FAST TRAIN (Janel Ryan)
SOUTHERN SWING (Trevor Rowe)
ARCTIC WOLF (Olivia Cairns)
BERING SEA (Chris Attard)
FORTIFIED (NZ) (Peter Fleming)
STAR STATUS (Fred Wieland)
NEW KING (GB) (Janel Ryan)
DON ARCANGELO (Stephen Massingham)
THE BEAT GOES ON (Trevor Rowe)
matthew.mcinerney1@news.com.au
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Originally published as Cairns Cup: Sharlee Hoffman confident in Maquereau
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