Colt hero’s ratings leave rivals far Astern

HOW good is Astern? According to Timeform’s Gary Crispe, he is the best of the 14 Golden Rose winners since the race began in 2003.

James McDonald over the moon after Astern’s stunning win. Picture: Simon Bullard

HOW good is Astern?

According to Timeform’s Gary Crispe, he is the best of the 14 Golden Rose winners since the race began in 2003.

Exosphere and Manawanui were the highest-rated winners of the race at 125, with Denman on 124, but preliminary analysis by Crispe’s team on Sunday had Astern clocking in at 126P (the “P” meaning he is capable of even better).

The modern benchmarks for three-year-olds are All Too Hard (2013) and Sepoy (2011), who were both assessed at 129 at the conclusion of their classic year, but very few reach Astern’s figure so early in the season.

Astern now has the task of improving on a relatively poor record of Golden Rose winners in the Caulfield Guineas.

Since In Top Swing did the double in the first year of the Rose, seven others have failed.

While the winners have not necessarily fared best, horses contesting the Golden Rose have won five of the 12 Caulfield Guineas they were able to contest, with In Top Swing joined by God’s Own, Helmet, Shooting To Win and Press Statement.

OLIVER NOT IN THE CLEAR YET

JOSH Oliver faces a nervous wait to see if stewards penalise him for his ill-judged ride on Black Jag, but credit to the youngster for getting the job done on Ringo’s A Rockstar at Doomben.

After he and Bridget Grylls were grilled by stipes over their rides in the Integrapay Handicap, Oliver could have lost composure on the hot pot in the next race, but guided it on a trouble-free passage to victory.

John Wallace, who trains Grylls’ mount Ranked, told stewards the pair were aware they made a mistake and should not be penalised for the incident.

Originally published as Colt hero’s ratings leave rivals far Astern