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Switzerland threw down the Golden Slipper challenge to Storm Boy on Saturday
The Pago Pago Stakes and Magic Night Stakes are to come this weekend, but what look to be the key Golden Slipper contenders have all had their final lead-up runs and last Saturday saw a high-priced colt emerge as the most likely danger to Storm Boy.
Storm Boy (116): For the first time since the Magic Millions, the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott-trained son of Justify is not the highest-rating 2YO of the season according to Timeform. That honour now sits with Switzerland, but, as the market suggests, the expectation is that Storm Boy will elevate and the emergence of Switzerland means that will have to.
Switzerland (117): Needed to lift on the numbers he'd returned in his first two wins to be a major player in the Slipper, but the $1.5 million son of Snitzel did so in emphatic fashion in Saturday's Group 2 Todman Stakes – the lead-up that has provided seven of the past 15 winners of the Slipper – when the Chris Waller-trained galloper ran the highest rating returned by a 2YO this season. His new peak of 117 is the same figure Farnan ran when he won the Todman before claiming the Slipper and two pounds superior to Anamoe, who was arguably the run of the race in his Golden Slipper.
Hayasugi (113): The highest-rated filly of the season thanks to her 113 win in the Group 1 Blue Diamond, but that number is better than it appears on paper owing to the penalty Timeform hits fillies and mares with owing to their 2kg weight allowance. Only five horses have completed the Diamond/Slipper double, but only one filly had swept the Diamond series before she did so earlier this year, so the daughter of Royal Meeting shouldn't be discounted out on account of history.
Straight Charge (113): Is a slight query at 1200m, especially in a Slipper with so much early speed, much of it likely to come from his Waterhouse/Bott stablemates, but the son of Written By probably did a good job to be beaten less than a length after peeling off 10.40secs and 10.66secs splits when pressured in the first half of the Todman Stakes. Earned a 113 rating for that performance, the same as he went when winning the Silver Slipper Stakes.
Lady Of Camelot (112): Another Waterhouse/Bott on-pacer who proved an ability to absorb early pressure and still be there at the finish when a narrow runner-up to Hayasugi in the Blue Diamond. The Written Tycoon filly ran 112 in that race and, providing that hasn't flattened her, does have scope to elevate given it was only her second run of the campaign.
There is one more weekend of Slipper lead-ups at Rosehill next weekend with beaten Blue Diamond favourite Coleman heading the 14 nominations for the Pago Pago Stakes, while Eneeza, who finished fourth in the Diamond, he highest-rated filly among 15 Magic Night entries.
TOP-RATING 2YOs THIS SEASON
117: Switzerland
116: Storm Boy
113: Hayasugi, Straight Charge
112: Lady Of Camelot, Stay Focused
111: Bodyguard, Coleman, Fearless
109: Shangri La Express, Traffic Warden
108: Eneeza, Espionage, Kuroyanagi
107: Manaal, High Octane, Highness, Prost, Rue De Royale