Smokin' Romans emerged as a serious Caulfield Cup hope for Ciaron Maher following a gutsy victory in the $200,000 Foundation Cup at Caulfield on Saturday.
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The New Zealand bred stayer beat Uncle Bryn and Gold Trip to win the ballot free exemption race into the Caulfield Cup. Smokin' Romans was 57th in order of entry for the Caulfield Cup before his win in Saturday's group 3 race.
Maher, who trains in partnership with David Eustace said it was a pleasant surprise to have Smokin' Romans in the $5 million Caulfield Cup which will be run on October 15.
"We were going to run the horse in the Bart Cummings at Flemington on October 1, as we chased a start in the Melbourne Cup but now we can focus on the Caulfield Cup," Maher said. "The win by Smokin' Romans has worked out really well. He'll come in on 50 kilograms or just over in the Caulfield Cup and then we'll try and get him into the Melbourne Cup. He'll be a good lightweight hope in both cups as he's a strong stayer."
Bookmakers slashed Smokin' Romans for the Caulfield Cup from $101 into $26 following his win in the Foundation Cup. The six-year-old has won eight of his 22 starts.
Smokin' Romans victory was the second leg of a winning double for the powerful Maher-Eustace training combination. Pride Of Jenni scored an impressive win over Megamea and Saigon in the $150,000 Living Legends over 1400 metres.
"Pride Of Jenni is not an easy mare to ride," Maher said. "I thought it was a good ride by Zac Spain. Pride of Jenni came to the races very fit on the back of plenty of hard work put in by stable staff back home."
From her 13 starts, Pride Of Jenni has won three races and earned more than $245,000 in prizemoney for her owners.
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