Smith says best is yet to come from emerging Tonsor
Lightly raced gelding Tonsor was a late starter to racing but trainer Matthew Smith said he can take another step up the ladder at Warwick Farm today.
Tonsor, a rising six-year-old, didn’t have his first start until May last year but he’s making up for lost time in winning three of his six starts to date with three minor placings. Smith is keen to test out Tonsor’s distance limits but said the 1200m event fitted in nicely with what lies ahead.
“I reckon his best racing is ahead of him,’’ Smith said. “He’s the horse that has the upside for sure, and I’m sure he will be better when he gets to 1400m. He’s a much more relaxed horse this prep.
"Once we work out his distance range we can come up with a plan for him.’’
Tonsor has already proven himself at 1400m, albeit in lesser company. He led all the way to win the Canterbury Sprint Series Final (1200m) last month second up for his first city win, and the start before raced on the speed before being run down, but Smith is confident he is not one-dimensional.
“We’d like to ride him a bit quieter than we have been to see how far he can run,’’ he said.
“He improved between runs and has continued to do well.
‘‘He looks great and his work has been good. I can’t fault him.
“After this race, we’ll go to a Saturday benchmark race. But I think it’s an even race and he’ll need to do everything right to win.’’
Meanwhile, Smith is forecasting improvement from stablemate Catmosphere in the Australian Turf Club Handicap (1400m) and warns his two runs back are no guide to his chances. The gelding has run seventh over 1100m in both starts.
“We’ve had to run him in a couple of unsuitable races to get his campaign started,’’ the trainer explained.
Supplied by Racing NSW