Racehorse trainers John Symons and Sheila Laxon prepare for Caloundra Cup race day

Top trainers, jockeys and fans remain confident that the Caloundra Cup race day will go ahead despite a Covid-19 lockdown in the lead up to the big day.

The Sunshine Coast Turf Club has been given the all clear for the running of the Caloundra Cup race day this saturday. Picture: Contributed

It’s all hands on deck at Sunshine Coast Turf Club to make sure the correct measures are in place for the region’s biggest race day to run as smooth as possible.

The club is set to run all nine races on Saturday’s card despite the three days leading in being subject to Covid-19 lockdown restrictions.

Turf club chief executive John Miller said he would make sure the correct procedures were in place for the event to go ahead.

“All we can do at this stage is hope that it (lockdown) ends on Friday night,” he said.

Mr Miller said all spectators would have to follow the guidelines set by Queensland Health.

“This is our best carnival racing day we have each year and we have some really good fields across the day,” he said.

The Sunshine Coast Turf Club has been given the all clear for the running of the Caloundra Cup race day this Saturday. Picture: Contributed

Esprit Racing trainers John Symons and Sheila Laxon will be among the list of talented trainers and jockeys set to attend the carnival.

The group one winning pair will have So Dapper running in an early race and Without Thinking in the day’s main race, the Winx Guineas.

Mr Symons said Without Thinking had been set for the race for quite some time and he would appreciate being back on his home track.

“He’s definitely ready and it’s great to be able to have him back to his normal self after trialling him down in Brisbane,” Mr Symons said.

“He’s raced in this class before and has ran well so we’re looking forward to what we see as a rematch race against a few of these other horses.”

Sky Racing personality Bernadette Cooper and trainer Sheila Laxon (left) hold the Melbourne Cup trophy when it was in Brisbane.

Mrs Laxon, who was the first female Melbourne Cup winning trainer with Ethereal in 2001, said the biggest positive was how excited Without Thinking was for Saturday.

“He’s gone back to being a happy horse since he’s been back at the Coast track and he had a big smile when he went around this morning so he’s back where we want him,” she said.

Queensland- based jockey Micheal Hellyer will ride Without Thinking and So Dapper and Mrs Laxon said she couldn’t be more excited.

“Speaking with Michael he was quietly confident with his chances and as a jockey he’s won the Guineas twice so that’s a massive positive,” she said.

Racing is set to start at 12:50pm with the final two races to be run under lights and finish at 6pm.