Speak The Truth Photo by Dan Costello
STAR Queensland pacer Speak The Truth is on trial for some serious travel and major races if he returns with a big run at Albion Park on Saturday night.
Shannon Price's five-year-old, who boasts 13 wins from just 25 starts and over $380,000, is first-up since finishing sixth in Leap To Fame's Brisbane Inter Dominion final on December 16.
"If he runs as well as we hope and expect on Saturday, especially from that bad draw (gate seven), then he'll go to Sydney for one of the qualifying sprints (for the Miracle Mile) the following Saturday," Price said.
"We'd love him to qualify for the Miracle Mile, but if he doesn't, there's the ($100,000) Lighthorse free-for-all over 2300m on Miracle Mile night as a good option."
Price warned not to read too much into Speak The Truth's seemingly lacklustre 16.1m second to stablemate Sure Thing Captain in a Redcliffe trial last Monday night.
"He's just never trialled well right through his career. He's a different horse at the races," she said.
"We're happy with the way he's come back, and he'll obviously improve on the run, but at his best, he'd go very close in a race like this, even from the draw."
Price is hoping Speak The Truth returns in style and attracts interest from slot holders for either the $NZ1mil Race By Grins at Cambridge on April 12 or the $1.25mil Nullarbor at Gloucester Park on April 19.
"We haven't had any calls as yet," she said. "But we're open to offers, ideally for whichever race Leap To Fame isn't going to."
"I think he showed during the Inter Dominion when he won a heat and finished third in another that he's not far off the best."
"We'd love to be a part of those big races."
Beyond Sydney, Price is also looking at heading to Melbourne for the $50,000 Melton Plate on March 16.
"It fits well. Sure Thing Captain will already be in Sydney, and if Speak The Truth is there too, they could both go to Melton for that race," she said.
"Then, if Speak The Truth got a slot in one of those big races, maybe he could stay in Melbourne until he heads to one of them."
"Hopefully, he runs well on Saturday night, and we've got lots to think about."
Price is already in NSW with Sure Thing Captain, who returns from a break in Saturday night's $50,000 Paleface Adios Stakes at Menangle.
He will need a top-four, maybe top-five finish to be enough from a horror draw (he will start from nine) to qualify for the $250,000 Group 1 Chariots Of Fire the week after.
Sure Thing Captain hasn't started since winning the "consolation" of the TAB Eureka, the Stockade, at Menangle on September 2, last year.
"Every runner we've got this weekend has drawn awfully, and it'll be hard for him to qualify against such a good field from out there," Price said.
"He'll need a lot of luck, but he's not far off his top despite being so long away from the races, and he's shown he loves Menangle."
Sure Thing Captain has five times at Menangle for three wins, including the Simpson Sprint last year and the Stockade.
