Rain to decide Big Money’s race venue

Trainer Rodney Northam says the weather will help decide where top sprinter Big Money will race.

Scone trainer Rodney Northam will let the weather decide whether he heads to Brisbane or Sydney with top sprinter Big Money.

Big Money has been accepted for Saturday’s Group Three George Moore Stakes (1200m) at Doomben and the Listed Starlight Stakes (1100m) at Rosehill.

Northam said he would prefer to head to Doomben because he believed Big Money would be better placed at 1200m rather than 1100m.

“But it has been raining in Brisbane and it will depend whether they get 10mm or 50mm of rain on Wednesday,” Northam said.

“I don’t have to leave for Brisbane until Thursday so I have an extra day up my sleeve. Either way I am keen for him to run.”

Big Money was scheduled to run at Doomben two weeks ago in the Keith Noud Quality but the race was washed out.

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It was transferred to Ipswich but another wet track meant Northam scratched Big Money.

It has been frustrating for the trainer who thinks Big Money is nearing the form which resulted in him winning four stakes races in a year as a younger horse.

Big Money won the George Moore Stakes and then took the Listed Lough Neagh Stakes at Doomben in December 2014.

He had earlier in the year won two other stakes races, the Healy Stakes at Eagle Farm and the Ramornie Handicap at Grafton.

Big Money has won only one more race since, the Group Three Southern Cross Stakes, at Randwick in February last year.

“He has had three trials, winning them all at Muswellbrook, Newcastle and Scone and was a good third in a three-way photo-finish in a race at Randwick (on November 7),” Northam said.

“I just want to get him racing.”