Racing
Doomben Wednesday: Modest aim to get Bianco's confidence back
Gold Coast trainer Paul Shailer has lowered the bar with talented sprinter Mister Bianco but is still hopeful the gelding can find his best form at Doomben on Wednesday.
Mister Bianco will line up in the Class Six Handicap over 1350 metres and will be ridden by Daniel Moor replacing his original booking of the injured apprentice Jai Williams.
The in-form Williams suffered a punctured lung in a race fall at Beaudesert last Friday.
A four-year-old son on Zousain, Mister Bianco completed a hat-trick of wins last campaign culminating in his dominant win in the T. L. Cooney at Ipswich last June.
The Cooney win put Mister Bianco on a path to the Group 3 Winx Guineas at the Sunshine Coast in July last year.
However, Mister Bianco was a late scratching from the Winx Guineas after a suitable replacement rider could not be found for an injured Ryan Maloney.
Shailer then hoped to target The Gateway Handicap at Eagle Farm in December with Mister Bianco before deciding later it was a bridge too far.
The winner of The Gateway gained an automatic start in the Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm in June.
"I just thought he wasn't quite good enough at the time," Shailer said.
"His confidence was high last campaign when he won those three races including the Cooney Handicap but he's not going as good this campaign.
"That's why I've dropped him back to the midweeks so he can get his confidence back.
"He's still only a young horse and there's plenty of upside to him."
Mister Bianco is lining up for his fifth start this campaign and is coming off a recent fifth to the Rob Heathcote-trained The Hatchet in a 1200-metre Benchmark race at the Sunshine Coast last month.
"I thought his run was good and he only got beaten one length," Shailer said.
"Hopefully he can win this and get his confidence back."
Meanwhile Shailer revealed Toorak Jewel will skip the Group 1 Golden Slipper in Sydney in favour of the $500,000 QTIS Jewel at the Gold Coast next month.
Toorak Jewel, a $36,000 buy for Mishani boss Mike Crooks, produced a stunning all-the-way win in the $500,000 Magic Millions The Debut at the Gold Coast last month.
It was another major scalp for Shailer following the biggest win of his career with Isti Star in the $1 million Magic Millions National 2YO Classic at the Gold Coast in May last year.
"She returned to work just over a week ago after putting on 15 kgs during a 10-day break," Shailer said.
"She looks unbelievable and she's being prepared for the QTIS Jewel."
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