Racing: So You Think ready for battle of top colts

Cox Plate winner So You Think has come up well for his impending clash with Denman. Photo / Getty Images

SYDNEY - The only time star colts Denman and So You Think have raced each other was in the Caulfield Guineas when both were unplaced, a one-off event for each of them.

Much has happened since then with the two set to meet in a tantalising clash in the Autumn Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on Saturday, ahead of another showdown in the Australian Guineas (1600m) two weeks later at Flemington.

Denman's two starts this year have brought two wins, including a stroll around Caulfield on Saturday in the Wellington Racing Club Stakes.

So You Think's next outing after the Caulfield Guineas was a breathtaking all-the-way win in the Cox Plate.

He hasn't raced since running second to All American in the Emirates Stakes on the final day of the Melbourne Cup carnival but trainer Bart Cummings is not concerned about his fitness levels.

Cummings watched Saturday's Caulfield race from Rosehill and while impressed with Denman, said he had every confidence in his colt.

"Denman looked good but So You Think is coming along nicely," Cummings said. "The two look a class above the rest."

Denman tightened to $2.60 favourite with TAB Sportsbet for the Guineas after Saturday's victory, with So You Think at $5.50.

Cox Plate runner-up Manhattan Rain was next at $11 with trainer Gai Waterhouse yet to make a decision on whether he goes to Melbourne.

He makes his return in the Royal Sovereign Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on Saturday with Waterhouse to confirm plans after that race.

Cummings toyed with running So You Think in the Australian Cup (2000m) on the same day as the Guineas but said he would tackle the shorter race.

"They are both on the same day so you can't run in both," he said. "The committee should do something about it. If there are 3-year-olds who can do both they should be given the opportunity."

Caulfield Guineas winner Starspangledbanner will run in the Newmarket Handicap (1200m), the third group one at Flemington on March 6.

Meanwhile, Gold Coast 3-year-old Shoot Out has been sent to Sydney with trainer John Wallace convinced he is the horse to end his 28-year group one drought.

Wallace's only victory at elite level was with Mother Of Pearl in the Queensland Oaks (2400m) at Eagle Farm in 1982.

Shoot Out is being aimed at the AJC Australian Derby (2400m) at Randwick in April and will follow the traditional path, via the Royal Sovereign Stakes, the Hobartville, Randwick and Rosehill Guineas.

The group two Royal Sovereign Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on Saturday will be Shoot Out's first appearance since his fifth to Graceful Anna in the Magic Millions Trophy (1400m) on his home track on January 9.

Wallace will get two opportunities for a group one before the Australian Derby when the son of High Chaparral tackles the Randwick Guineas (1600m) on March 13 and the Rosehill Guineas (2000m) a fortnight later.

Shoot Out was given a short break following the Magic Millions Trophy but remained in Wallace's stables.

The winner of last season's Sires' Produce Stakes at Eagle Farm, Shoot Out had his first serious test ahead of his Sydney trip when runner-up in a 1000m barrier trial on the Gold Coast last Tuesday.

"He's been going too hard with the blinkers on so I put winkers on him in the trial and he went well," said Wallace.

- AAP