Dalasan earns shot at VRC Sires’ Produce

Trainer Leon Macdonald believes Dalasan has earned his shot at the VRC Sires’ Produce Stakes.

Two fast-finishing wins in Adelaide over distances expected to be short of his best have earned unbeaten two-year-old colt Dalasan an interstate trip for the Group Two VRC Sires’ Produce Stakes at Flemington.

Trained by Leon Macdonald and Andrew Gluyas at Morphettville, Dalasan won over 1000m on debut last month before again finishing strongly to win over 1100m on February 16 on his home track.

Given those performances, Macdonald and Gluyas decided he deserved his chance in Saturday’s VRC Sires’ Produce Stakes over 1400m on the spacious Flemington track.

“We were going to give him a couple of runs and probably give him a break until his three-year-old days, because he’s by Dalakhani out of a stout mare (Khandallah),” Macdonald said.

“He’s probably more of a Derby horse than a short-course horse.

“But we decided to give him a couple of runs and he’s won them both, so we’ll see what happens on Saturday.

“He has finished off well in both his wins.

“The horse always showed me a bit but to win a 1000-metre race I thought was a bit extraordinary.

“He’ll be much better suited at 1400 metres.”

The stable also prepares Dalasan’s three-year-old half-sister Liberty Lover by Rebel Raider who Madconald trained to win the 2008 Victoria Derby.

The filly runs over 2400m in Adelaide on Saturday.

In a measure of the trainer’s opinion of Dalasan, Macdonald this week bought the colt’s yearling half-brother by Dissident for $110,000 at the Inglis Premier Sale in Melbourne.

“Very much alike, he is,” Macdonald said.

Melbourne’s premier jockey Craig Williams, who won the 2011 Caulfield Cup on the Macdonald-trained Southern Speed, takes the ride on Dalasan in the field of 13.

Dalasan has firmed in an early market to be equal $5.50 favourite with Hawker Hurricane on Wednesday, with the two to jump from barriers 12 and 13 respectively.