Cox Plate or Caulfield Cup? - Verry Elleegant Back On Track

Mark Smith - Saturday October 5

Champion trainer Chris Waller will sit down with connections to determine whether to target the Cox Plate or Caulfield Cup with the four-year-old mare Verry Elleegant who scored a last stride win over the oh so gallant Samadoubt in Saturday's Group II Hill Stakes (2000m) at Rosehill.

James McDonald was back with the tailenders on the daughter of Zed turning into the home straight as Tim Clark had Samadoubt in his favoured frontrunning role. 


Winner last season of the Group 1 Vinery Stud Stakes and Group 1 ATC Australian Oaks, Verry Elleegant didn't flinch in the run to the line to defeat Samadoubt (Not A Single Doubt) by a nose with a further three-quarter of a length back to the winner's stablemate Life Less Ordinary (IRE) (Thewayyouare). (images Steve Hart). 

"I think we know where she is at," Waller said.

"We Just need to work out a race for her. I won't want to jump in today. It will be the Cox Plate or the Caulfield Cup.

"We just went back to the basics, that was why she was back last.

It was good to see her settling a lot better. While she only won by a small margin, I think the run had a bit of merit considering where she's come from."

Verry Elleegant advances her record to seven wins, two seconds and a third from 14 starts with earnings of $1,594,369.

Verry Elleegant has some interesting line breeding as her pedigree features a double cross of champion sire Danehill and inbreeding 4s x 4D to influential blue hen Cotehele House a daughter of the great Eight Carat (GB).

She is the best of three winners out of the Danroad mare Opulence whose granddam Chalet Girl (Imposing) is a half-sister to Danewin and Commands and comes from the same Eight Carat family of Verry Elleegant's sire Zed.

Opulence has a 3yo colt by Haradasun named Grand Prospect. After missing to Zed in 2016 she has a yearling colt by Zed and was covered by the son of Zabeel last season.

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