Giga Kick to start his autumn campaign in Sydney before Brisbane winter tilt

Giga Kick’s trainer Clayton Douglas says the powerful sprinter is still weeks away from appearing at the trials as The Everest winner prepares to start his autumn campaign in Sydney.

The Everest winner Giga Kick is still a few weeks away from appearing at the trials to prepare for his autumn carnival campaign. Picture: Getty Images

The Everest winner Giga Kick is set to again bypass the Melbourne autumn sprints to chase the Sydney riches in March and April.

Giga Kick hasn’t won a race in Melbourne since his Group 2 Danehill Stakes success in October 2022 at the start before his triumph in that year’s edition of The Everest.

The Clayton Douglas-trained sprinter has won Group 1 contests in Sydney and Brisbane and went close to a second win in The Everest when narrowly beaten in last year’s event.

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Douglas said Giga Kick was weeks away from even heading to the jumpouts, ruling out Melbourne’s big four autumn sprints, the Lightning Stakes, Oakleigh Plate, Newmarket Handicap and William Reid Stakes.

“There’s nothing really planned out yet,” Douglas said.

“He’ll most likely head up to Sydney at some point but he’ll just poke through the next five or six weeks until we get him back to the jumpouts and we’ll go from there.

“I would say he’s more going to be later in the autumn.

“I don’t know whether I’ll give him three trials or two. That will determine where he kicks off.”

Giga Kick missed last year’s autumn carnivals as he recovered from muscle tears sustained in the 2023 McEwen Stakes at The Valley.

Giga Kick is set to campaign in Sydney and Brisbane over the coming weeks. Picture: Getty Images

The now five-year-old went winless against Australia’s best sprinters last spring but Douglas was happy with his stable star’s results.

“I think he performed great in all his runs really,” Douglas said.

“He raced right through the end of the spring and he’s come back really well.

“You never know when they’re coming off an injury, how they are going to perform and how many runs you’re going to get out of them in one preparation.”

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Douglas said Giga Kick has done well in his summer spell, giving the trainer some work to get him into racing condition.

The Mornington-based horseman said he would handle most of Giga Kick’s pre-training rather than send the chestnut to an external pre-trainer.

“He’s carrying a bit of condition, which is good, and he’s done well,” Douglas said.

“I do everything with him. I’ve got the treadmill, the pool and the water walker is just up the road so we just do a bit of alternative work with him just to keep him active and busy.

“Most horses would do a month to five weeks of pre-training but, because he moves around so much, it’s not like he’s in one spot all the time.

“From Melbourne, he goes to Sydney and from Sydney, he’ll probably go up to Queensland.”

Originally published as Giga Kick to start his autumn campaign in Sydney before Brisbane winter tilt