Scone to give up its standalone Saturday in May

It ended up being Randwick Guineas winner Lion’s Roar, but only after a sliding doors moment.

“John trained Contributer at Godolphin and loved him and we both thought he would make it as a stallion,” Abrahams said. “We went over there to buy one and the first we tried to get we just got blown out of the water on.

“Godolphin paid $220,000 for it. It was called Jeronimos and ran second in [a] Hawkesbury class 1 [on Saturday].

“We waited for the second book and we weren’t going home without this bloke because John said he reminded him of dad and he only cost $65,000.

“Ever since he has done everything right and John just kept saying to me ‘wait until the autumn’. He was right because now we have a group 1 winner.”

Mizzy hopes to break group 1 duck in Coolmore

Mizzy was unable to stop Savatiano breaking her group 1 duck in Saturday’s Canterbury Stakes, and Anthony Cummings is hoping it will be her turn in the Coolmore Classic.

Savatiano had the unwanted record of biggest earner before winning a group 1, banking $2.1 million before Saturday, and Mizzy – already a millionaire – is heading in the same direction.

“She’s won $1.5 million now and I’m a bit more impatient than [son and Savatiano’s Godolphin head trainer] James and want to get the group 1 next week,” Cummings said.

“She is going really well and I think the back-up will really help her at the 1500m. You have to remember her best run was in the Golden Eagle over Rosehill 1500m [when she was third to Kolding].

“It has taken a while to get her back to that form because she hurt her hamstring and her back in that race and had a year off.

“She has her confidence back and I think she will get a group 1 like Savatiano did, hopefully on Saturday.”

Matthew Smith is hoping Nimalee will get run in the Coolmore Classic after he was forced to scratch her from the Aspiration Quality on Saturday, where she was favourite.

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Kalashnikov fires into the Golden Slipper

Peter and Paul Snowden knew they had a talented two-year-old in Kalashnikov, but it was a case of “getting his head right” and their timing looks to be perfect for a crack at this month’s Golden Slipper.

The Capitalist colt, who was beaten favourite in the Breeders Plate, the opening two-year-old race of the season, races in the James Harron silks like his father and will be out to further emulate him in the world’s richest race for two-year-olds on March 20 after winning the Black Opal in Canberra on Sunday.

“He was a bit frustrating because you could see the talent but his head was getting in the way,” Paul Snowden said.

“The penny has dropped with him and he is getting it right on the track and there will be improvement there into the Golden Slipper.”

Kalashnikov is a $31 chance in the Golden Slipper, for which Todman runner-up Profiteer remains the $4.60 favourite.