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Don Carlo hasn’t missed a beat since his bold showing on Saturday.
The four-year-old made his open class debut in the Listed Pegasus Stakes Handicap (1000m) and from an outside gate he was forced over extra ground before finishing runner-up to Enzo’s Lad.
Don Carlo will jump from an inside barrier in Wednesday’s Gr.3 Lindauer Stewards’ Stakes Handicap (1200m) at Riccarton to give the gelding every chance to go one better.“He got beaten a length and a half and if we’d got the run the winner had then it might have been a wee bit different,” trainer Michael Daly said.
“We were out four wide and pulling all the way and when he got to the front he got a bit lost. He must have covered two more lengths than Enzo’s Lad.“Anyway, he’s come through the run super. There’s always a bit of a question mark about backing up, but he hadn’t run for a month so you could expect some natural improvement.”
Don Carlo has won half of his 10 starts and has proved versatile as far as underfoot conditions go.“He’s a very sound horse with a lovely action, firmer tracks don’t bother him,” Daly said.
He has yet to confirm a summer programme, but another strong showing will earn Don Carlo a nomination for the Gr.1 JR& N Berkett Telegraph (1200m) at Trentham in January.