Bostonian's trainer Tony Pike is one of the Kiwi trainers to have sent staff to Australia, with Richards already having one staff member there and another in Craig Thornton having flown in yesterday to start his 14-day hotel quarantine before helping oversee Te Akau's spring team.
While Sydney's weather is supposed to improve after the recent big wet, Pike is hoping that still sees a soft or heavy track at Randwick on Saturday for Bostonian, who has won three group one sprints in Australia a modern-day record for a New Zealand horse.
Bostonian has won the Doomben 10,000, Kingsford Smith Cup and Canterbury Stakes, all at distances 1400m or below whereas while the wonder mare Sunline had a far superior overall Australian record only one of her group one wins there were at 1400m or below.
Rough Habit also won two Stradbrokes at group one level but most of his Australian racing was over longer trips while former New Zealand galloper Red Tempo won three group one sprints in Australia when trained by Colin Hayes in the mid 1980s.
That was a golden era for New Zealand sprinters as Mr Illusion also won a Galaxy and Oakleigh Plate but that is still only two group ones, one less than Bostonian.
So Bostonian is an almost unheralded group one sprint king from these shores and Pike says that can continue on Saturday if Randwick comes up wet.
"While the weather is supposed to improve for Saturday my people over there tell me the track will still be wet, which will suit us," says Pike.
"He has a remarkable record fresh and I think he is forward enough so if he can draw well and sit handy he can win."
Jay Ford will partner Bostonian with Nash Rawiller suspended and James McDonald committed to Verry Elleegant.
Richards knows a wet track on Saturday won't be a disaster for Melody Belle, far from it, but would still prefer a surface better than heavy for both her and stablemate Probabeel, who resumes in the group three Show County against arch rival Funstar.
"Obviously Probabeel is better on a good track and I think at least a slightly better track would suit Melody Belle too," says Richards.
"She has come on well since her fresh up run and looks great. Kerrin McEvoy will ride them both this Saturday and I'd expect him to be more positive on Melody Belle."
Richards has four more horses heading to Sydney this week, three of them Cambridge Stud-owned fillies or mares with the ultimate goal of securing Australian black.
That trio is headlined by last season's Sistema Stakes runner-up Vernazza but Richards is not so sure about the spring plans of his other elite gallopers who were originally to be aimed at the Victorian spring gems like the Cox Plate.
"We are still hopeful of getting horses there but it is a little more unsure at the moment with the way things are in Victoria," says Richards.
Pike confirms that Vodafone Derby winner Sherwood Forest will stay home this spring and summer and be aimed at the last two legs of the Hawkes Bay Triple Crown while Catalyst is likely to be under Pike's staff's care but could remain in trainer Clayton Chipperfield's name for his Sydney campaign starting September 19 when Glen Boss will ride him in The Shorts.
The Baker/Forsman stable also has two confirmed stars flying to Sydney next week with ATC Derby winner Quick Thinker and The Chosen One using Sydney as a potential lead-up to the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups but group one winner True Enough will stay home.
"He has a very minor setback which he is already over but he will now head to Hastings instead," confirmed Forsman.
