Trainer Rex Lipp has ‘no doubt’ star gelding Cifrado can strike back at Doomben from 20-length defeat last start

Trainer Rex Lipp still has Stradbroke Handicap ambitions for Cifrado as he looks to put his last-placed finish in the King Of The Mountain slot race behind him at Doomben on Saturday.

Toowoomba trainer Rex Lipp has “no doubt” his $1.7m earner Cifrado can bounce back from a horror run last-start and push on to the Group 1 $3m Stradbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm in June.

Cifrado finished last out of 11 runners in the $750,000 King Of The Mountain slot race (1200m) in Toowoomba on March 28 on a Heavy 10 track after starting as the $3.40 favourite.

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The four-year-old gelding crossed the post 20 lengths behind winner Steady Ready but he can make amends in Saturday’s Quality Handicap (1350m) at Doomben.

“He seems to have got over that problem in the King Of The Mountain when he copped a lot of sand,” Lipp said on Friday.

“He did exactly the same on a sloppy, wet track at Eagle Farm one day. When the tracks are shifty, he just doesn’t want to stride out on them.

“I’ve got no doubt (Cifrado will bounce back on Saturday).”

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Lipp said he still held Stradbroke ambitions for Cifrado, who needed to lift his current rating of 102 to qualify for Queensland’s blue-ribbon event.

“If he happens to win and he gets enough (rating) points then, yes, we’ll be heading to the Stradbroke,” Lipp said.

“At this stage, we’re still pointing that way. It’s on the radar.”

Cifrado finished last in the King Of The Mountain slot race. Picture: Grant Peters/Trackside Photography

Cifrado, owned by $40m Lotto winner Cliff Little, finished an impressive second to the Tony Gollan-trained Hidden Wealth in the Magic Millions QTIS contest on the Gold Coast in January.

On Friday morning, TAB had listed Gollan’s gelding Devastate as the $5 favourite in the Quality Handicap at Doomben ahead of stablemates Warby ($6) and Set To Shine ($7), with Cifrado also at $7.

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Meanwhile, another horse looking to strike back on Saturday is the Corey and Chris Munce-trained filly Poster Girl, who will run in the QTIS 3YO Open race over 1615m.

The filly came last on a Soft 6 track in a 3YO Handicap (1350m) at Doomben on April 1 in a meeting rescheduled due to southeast Queensland’s recent wet weather after winning her previous start, a Benchmark 70 over 1200m at Eagle Farm.

Poster Girl gave Irish jockey Siobhan Rutledge her first Saturday metropolitan win. Picture: Grant Peters/Trackside Photography

Chris Munce said he was targeting the $700,000 Group 1 Queensland Oaks (2200m) at Eagle Farm on June 7 for Poster Girl, who will again be ridden by Irish jockey Siobhan Rutledge on Saturday.

“The mile should suit her and she’s on a trial for an Oaks campaign if she can measure up against the boys on Saturday,” Munce said.

“She’s a very fit and healthy horse. At this stage it’s full steam ahead to the Oaks but obviously she’s never raced past 1350m like the other day (April 1).

“She’s got to show me that she’ll finish the mile off strong, which I’m pretty confident she will.”

TAB has posted the Kevin Kemp-trained topweight Apuntar as the $3.60 favourite for the race, with Poster Girl at $9.50 on Friday morning.

Originally published as Trainer Rex Lipp has ‘no doubt’ star gelding Cifrado can strike back at Doomben from 20-length defeat last start