Andrew Forsman‘s progressive mare Positivity has booked her ticket into the 2024 Caulfield Cup after a thrilling win in the Group 3 $200,000 MRC Foundation Cup (2000m) on Underwood Stakes Day.
The race registered as the Naturalism Stakes offers the winner a ballot free ride into the time-honoured Group 1 $5 million Caulfield Cup (2400m) and that could be where Positivity ends up this spring according to stable representative Chloe Cumming.
“Honestly, have to get her home, see how she pulls up and talk to Andrew and see what he wants to do with it,” she told the media post-race.
The four-year-old daughter of Almanzor went out at $16 odds in this year’s MRC Foundation Cup despite her promising lead-up second in the Listed Heatherlie Handicap (1400m) at the Caulfield track last time out.
This year’s NZ Oaks runner-up back in the autumn ate up the extra metres second-up and was just too good in the final bob narrowly denying Future History (2nd) and Gear Up (3rd) in a three-way photo-finish with Harry Coffey in the saddle.
“Yeah, that’s a pretty incredible feeling. She’s been super in her work coming into this and she looks amazing, and so to see her get it on the line is pretty incredible,” Cumming said.
“Yeah, she’s come a long way since spring, you know, acclimatised – sorry, since autumn, since she came over and she’s just sort of been thriving since she’s been over here; she’s been loving it, so it’s been really good.
“I mean she just seems to be running for him (Coffey) at the moment so can’t complain at all.”
Another quality staying mare, Jameka (2016), was the last runner to complete the Naturalism Stakes – Caulfield Cup double.
Updated all-in 2024 Caulfield Cup odds on this year’s showdown on October 19 at Ladbrokes.com.au have Positivity at $34 to be the next, and Coffey is hopeful of the mare’s chances in the opening leg of the spring cups double.
“All you can do is win, that’s two really consistent runs in a row so I suppose she’s going to get in with no weight, I might have to get on the brown rice diet to ride here but all you can do is win and that’s what she’s doing so she’s going the right way,” he said talking of the light weight the mare would have in the Caulfield Cup field.
Click here for the latest pre-field Caulfield Cup 2024 markets courtesy of Ladbrokes.com.au.
2024 MRC Foundation Cup (Naturalism Stakes) Results & Finishing Order
| Finish | No. | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Bar. | Weight | Penalty | Starting Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 | POSITIVITY (NZ) | Andrew Forsman | Harry Coffey | 3 | 54kg | $16 | |||
| 2 | 11 | FUTURE HISTORY (GB) | Ciaron Maher | Declan Bates | 0.15L | 1 | 55.5kg | $18 | ||
| 3 | 9 | GEAR UP (IRE) | Annabel Neasham & Rob Archibald | Jamie Mott | 0.17L | 7 | 56kg | $12 | ||
| 4 | 15 | SAINT GEORGE (GB) | Ciaron Maher | Ms Jamie Kah | 0.32L | 2 | 54kg | $4.80 | ||
| 5 | 10 | FANCY MAN (IRE) | Annabel Neasham & Rob Archibald | Tyler Schiller | 2.82L | 14 | 55.5kg | $71 | ||
| 6 | 1 | QUE TEMPESTA (IRE) | Ben, Will & JD Hayes | Mark Zahra | 2.92L | 4 | 59kg | $6 | ||
| 7 | 16 | IMMEDIACY (NZ) | Trent Busuttin & Natalie Young | Craig Williams | 3.38L | 6 | 54kg | $3.20F | ||
| 8 | 4 | LE DON DE VIE (GB) | Ciaron Maher | Ethan Brown | 3.63L | 9 | 58kg | $31 | ||
| 9 | 3 | FRANCESCO GUARDI (IRE) | Chris Waller | Joao Moreira | 3.73L | 11 | 58kg | $21 | ||
| 10 | 2 | JUST FINE (IRE) | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Jordan Childs | 4.48L | 10 | 58.5kg | $11 | ||
| 11 | 13 | THE MAP | Dan Clarken & Oopy MacGillivray | Craig Newitt | 4.54L | 8 | 54.5kg | $31 | ||
| 12 | 5 | BANKERS CHOICE (NZ) | Michael Moroney & Glen Thompson | Damian Lane | 5L | 15 | 57.5kg | $14 | ||
| 13 | 7 | AMADE (IRE) | Phillip Stokes | Daniel Stackhouse | 9.5L | 12 | 57kg | $61 | ||
| 14 | 12 | OKITA SOUSHI (IRE) | Ciaron Maher | Jye McNeil | 9.9L | 5 | 55kg | $101 | ||
| 15 | 6 | PENNYWEKA (NZ) | Ciaron Maher | Michael Dee | 15.9L | 13 | 57.5kg | $101 | ||
| 8 | MURAMASA | Trent Busuttin & Natalie Young | John Allen | 0 |
Table Credit: Racing Australia.
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