Alex Rae shows how far he has come as a trainer with Caulfield pair Lofty Arch and Jenni The Fox

A pair of three-year-olds at Caulfield on Saturday highlights how far young trainer Alex Rae has progressed since getting his trainer’s licence when he was 20.

A pair of three-year-olds serve to show how far young trainer Alex Rae has progressed since getting his trainer’s licence at the young age of 20.

The 29-year-old Rae learned his craft at Caulfield, the developing ground for fellow trainers such as Liam Howley, Henry Dwyer and Nick Ryan, before branching out on his own at Cranbourne.

• PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet’s team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW!

Like most trainers, Rae started with a stable of tried horses before steadily building a team, progressing to focussing horses he thinks can make the grade in town.

“I got my trainer’s licence when I was young and my brother and myself have always worked hard and we’ve done it all ourselves,” Rae said.

“Just as we’ve developed a little bit, we’ve always got some really good staff around but I’m always keen to be on the ground amongst it.

“We’ve worked hard for a long time with horses at the lower end of the scale but in the last couple of years, we’ve got some quality in the door.”

• Brad Waters’ tips, race-by-race analysis for Caulfield on Saturday

Rae will take lightly-raced three-year-olds Lofty Arch and Jenni The Fox to Caulfield for Group races at Saturday’s Blue Diamond Stakes meeting.

Lofty Arch will tackle the Group 3 Zeditave Stakes (1200m) while Jenni The Fox will step out in the Group 2 Angus Armanasco Stakes (1400m).

Lofty Arch won two of three starts in his first preparation in the spring, heading to the spelling paddock after winning the Listed Gothic Stakes in heavy conditions on Caulfield Cup day.

Lofty Arch won two of three starts in his debut prep including the Listed Gothic Stakes at Caulfield last October. Picture: Michael Klein

The son of Snitzel thrived in his summer break, cutting an imposing figure when working under jockey Craig Williams at Caulfield on Tuesday morning.

Rae was happy to set Lofty Arch a tough task at Group 2 level in the spring but has a Group 1 aim in mind for the smart colt should he run to expectations in the Zeditave Stakes.

• Hunter living Diamond dream with ‘cracking type’ bought for a steal

“He won a stakes race as a three-year-old and he’s only raced against three-year-olds so we’ll get through Saturday before we look any higher,” Rae said.

“He went from a maiden to a Group 2, which is not generally done, and he coped with it well and the thought was that he was going to improve off his first racing campaign.

“It looks like he has, which is exciting.

“We respect that it is a test (on Saturday) and that he’s against some handy opposition and they don’t hand out Group 3 races.

“But if he deals with that well and he gets in well in the Newmarket (Handicap), then it would be an appropriate option.”

Lofty Arch has firmed from $4 to $3.80 in early betting on the Zeditave Stakes while Jenni The Fox is a $15 chance to win the Angus Armanasco Stakes.

Jenni The Fox finished fourth to quality three-year-old Angel Capital when taking on the males in the Group 2 Autumn Stakes but will revert to fillies’ grade on Saturday.

Craig Newitt will stick with Jenni The Fox on Saturday.

Originally published as Alex Rae shows how far he has come as a trainer with Caulfield pair Lofty Arch and Jenni The Fox