Blamey quinella pair back for another shot

Fifty Stars (r) and stablemate So Si Bon (l) will again contest the Blamey Stakes at Flemington.

Stablemates Fifty Stars and So Si Bon are set to clash again in the Blamey Stakes at Flemington after running the quinella a year ago.

Saturday’s Group Two race over 1600m guarantees the winner a wildcard entry to the $5 million All-Star Mile (1600m) at Caulfield on March 14 which could be an option for So Si Bon.

Lindsay Park co-trainer Tom Dabernig said the stable was planning for both to back up into the Australian Cup (2000m) at Flemington on March 7.

But connections of So Si Bon could revisit that call and shift their attention to the All-Star Mile if he is successful on Saturday.

After his second in the 2019 Blamey, So Si Bon went on to finish fourth behind stablemate Harlem in the Australian Cup a week later while Fifty Stars won the Ajax Stakes at Rosehill on a heavy track two weeks after his Blamey success.

Both horses resumed in the C F Orr Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on February 8 with Fifty Stars finishing fourth behind three-year-old Alabama Express and So Si Bon eighth.

“I thought Fifty Stars ran really well first-up,” Dabernig said.

“The plan with him is to back up the week after into the Australian Cup and it’s probably the same with So Si Bon, all going well.

“But if So Si Bon happened to win we could have a rethink and go to the All-Star Mile.

“The owners have sort of let go of that happening, but if it did happen, you’d be mad if you didn’t have a go.”

While first prize in the All-Star Mile is $2.25 million against $900,000 for the Australian Cup, Dabernig said Fifty Stars’ owner Gerry Ryan was looking at the bigger picture.

“Being a colt, the Group One is quite important and that has always been Gerry’s one priority, to try and get a Group One with Fifty Stars,” Dabernig said.

“I think both will run really well. They’ve had three weeks from their first-up run and have come on nicely.”