Blue Diamond Stakes favourite Bold Bastille’s autumn preparation heats up

Bold Bastille impressed with her dominant debut win in the $500,000 Inglis Banner at The Valley on Cox Plate Day to rank highly in betting on two rich two-year-old features.

Bold Bastille wins on Cox Plate day.

Plans are still fluid but Blue Diamond Stakes equal favourite Bold Bastille is ready to ramp up her preparation for her return to racing in the coming weeks.

Bold Bastille impressed with her dominant debut win in the $500,000 Inglis Banner at The Valley on Cox Plate Day to rank highly in betting on two rich two-year-old features.

TAB has Bold Bastille at the top of betting on the $2 million Inglis Millennium in Sydney on February 10 at $2.80 while the filly is the $6 equal favourite to win the Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes.

Bold Bastille runs away with the Inglis Banner! 👀

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— 7HorseRacing 🐎 (@7horseracing) October 28, 2023

Co-trainer Will Hayes said bookmakers were right to keep a tight rein on Bold Bastille’s prices for the two-year-old features.

“What she did Cox Plate Day was impressive and she’s definitely deserved of what the bookmakers make of her,” said Hayes, who trains Bold Bastille in partnership with his brothers Ben and JD.

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“They are probably not taking any chances by putting her out too long in the market.”

Bold Bastille had progressed through her base training stage at Lindsay Park and would shortly move to the gallops.

But connections have not decided a first-up assignment for the Brazen Beau filly.

“She’ll tell us what race we kick her off him,” Hayes said.

“At the minute, she’s just about to start galloping and go to the trials in a couple of weeks.”

Hayes said the Lindsay Park team had kept a close eye on Bold Bastille in her time away from the races, using the huge operation’s full range of facilities to prepare the valuable filly.

“It’s all under the one roof and there’s not a day goes by that we don’t run our eyes over them,” he said.

“We can’t fault her from the way she’s freshened. It’s difficult to freshen two-year-olds from the spring to the autumn but we think we’ve got an advantage at the farm with our day paddocks and water walkers.

“She’s done everything correct but only time will tell and we’ll see whether she’s up to them.”

Originally published as Blue Diamond Stakes favourite Bold Bastille’s autumn preparation heats up