Australian Guineas contender Et Tu Brute can realise potential in CS Hayes Stakes after gelding operation
Et Tu Brute made a winning return as a gelding last month and can boost his Australian Guineas ambitions in the CS Hayes Stakes at Flemington on Saturday.
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Et Tu Brute is a chance to cement his Group 1 Australian Guineas ambitions in the Group 3 CS Hayes on Saturday at Flemington.
Melbourne Cup-winning trainer Sam Freedman expects the promising three-year-old, raced in the same colours as last year’s CS Hayes winner Elliptical, to make up for missed opportunities as a colt.
Et Tu Brute was “not dissimilar” to Elliptical in potential but unlike the former stablemate he needed the snip “pretty bad”.
“He’s always shown us pretty nice ability but he was a real handful as a colt,” Freedman said.
“He ran well in Queensland (fourth in a Listed race), back in Victoria he got it all wrong and was throwing races away, the gelding operation has been the making of him.”
Et Tu Brute is a $14 chance with TAB for the CS Hayes behind King Colorado ($3), Otago ($4.40), Riff Rocket ($7), Verdad ($9.50), Hey Fat Cat ($10) and Run Harry Run ($11).
“He should run well, he’s obviously got to improve but he’ll appreciate Flemington and 1400m,” Freedman said.
“We’ll find out where he sits for the remainder of the autumn … there’s nowhere to hide, we can aim up at the moment and we can always adjust if he’s not up to it.”
Well-named Et Tu Brute, a Dundeel gelding out of Caesar’s Princess, won a Sandown maiden first-up as a gelding last month.
Latin phrase, Et Tu Brute, translated as “You Too, Brutus”, were Julius Caesar’s dying words.
Freedman has smart Godolphin colt Eject in the Listed Talindert Stakes on Saturday.
A big performance in the two-year-old contest could put the Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes into the frame.
“He’d have to win very, very impressively and pull up well obviously,” Freedman said.
“He’s impressed us enough to be running Saturday, he’s mixed his trial form a little bit, time to take him to the races and see what he can do now.”
Eject was plain in a Caulfield jumpout last month but responded a fortnight later to win a 1000m Balnarring gallop.
He finished second in two jumpouts on the Flemington straight last year which should hold the colt in good stead for Saturday.
Freedman has five entered for Saturday including Punch Lane and Bel Air in the last race.
“There’s probably not a lot between them, Punch Lane is probably on an upward trajectory, I don’t quite know where his ceiling might be,” Freedman said.
“He’s been impressing all the time and improving, but he’s in a much higher grade Saturday, a grade he’s not contested yet.
“Bel Air is your hardy handicapper that is a benchmark for these races, I think it’s a good opportunity to see where Punch Lane fits in and for Bel Air we’ve taken the blinkers off him.
“We’re going to ride him pretty cold and hopefully get over the top of them, we wouldn’t have a lot between them but they’re interesting runners because they’re at different stages of their career and we’ll see how Punch Lane measures up to this grade.”
Originally published as Australian Guineas contender Et Tu Brute can realise potential in CS Hayes Stakes after gelding operation
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