Rosehill trainer Gerald Ryan is eyeing a group 1 event at the Brisbane winter carnival with talented two-year-old Sinba after his brilliant win at Newcastle on Saturday.
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The gelding, a son of former New Zealand star Xtravagant, had performed impressively in two Sydney barrier trials in April. Ryan and co-trainer Sterling Alexiou chose the Newcastle track, with its long straight, for the strapping prospect to make his debut.
Backed from $3.70 into a dominant $2.30 favourite for the 1400-metre maiden plate, Sinba settled near the tail of the eight-horse field with Keagan Latham aboard.
At the top of the straight, the field fanned and Latham steered Sinba into the clear. He gathered the leaders in and sprinted away to win by more than two lengths.
Ryan's expectations are high.
"I have had a huge opinion of this bloke for some time," Ryan said. "He is a big fellow but richly talented. We decided to start him off at Newcastle because it is such a great track.
"Sinba will probably win again at Gosford in a couple of weeks and, all going well, we may give him a crack at the group 1 JJ Atkins at Eagle Farm on June 12."
Classy Newcastle mare Cafe Royal resumed with an effortless all-the-way three-length win in the 1200m John Whitmore Memorial benchmark 64 handicap.
Trained by Nathan Doyle, Cafe Royal was clearly the best horse in the race, and with boom apprentice Dylan Gibbons' three-kilogram claim, she was well placed with 58.5kg.
"She is very smart and she indicated that she was back to her best in two recent trial wins," Doyle said.
"Dylan rides a lot of work for me and realistically I feel guilty being able to put him on and claim three kilograms. He is such a talent."
Sky Racing commentators at Newcastle claimed "as far as apprentices go, Dylan is the next big thing in NSW racing".
Gibbons, in his first season, has ridden 53 winners.
Latham and Jean Van Overmeire landed riding doubles at the meeting.
Latham, with a career-best 83 winners for the season, won on Sinba in the opening event and the heavily backed Indigenous in the 1250m maiden handicap.
Trained by John O'Shea, the mare broke through at her ninth start after trialling well leading into Saturday's race.
Indigenous was backed from $7 into $3.80.
Overmeire's winners, Explosive Truth and Mensa Missile, are trained by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott and both led throughout.
