Promising import Saganti has some obstacles to overcome at Randwick for first Australian win
Trainer Michael Kent Jr believes Saganti will have the class edge on his rivals this Saturday but concedes external factors could prove to be the promising import's undoing at Royal Randwick.
Saganti is hunting his maiden Australian victory in his second preparation in the Southern Hemisphere in the Tom Bingle Benchmark 94 Handicap (1800m).
Kent Jr, who trains alongside Mick Price, has seen enough in two starts for the stable to know they have a nice horse on their hands with Saganti going close to breaking through last start in a close third over the mile at Hawkesbury.
The son of Zarak is a $3.40 chance to score a second-up win with champion jockey James McDonald in the saddle.
'I think the horse has got the most class in the race but he is still looking for further and he is only second-up, drawn nine of nine,' Kent Jr said.
'If he isn't quick to begin on Saturday and settles back, the leading pair may control and dictate and if that's the case it could prove to be a hard for him to overcome.
'In his favour he has class on his side, he loves soft ground and the rise in trip, fitter for the run … we will leave it up to J-Mac.'
• Ray and Duff's Randwick tips: Best bet 'jumps out at me'
Price and Kent Jr have tinkered with the gear and added an off side bubble cheeker and lugging bit to help the gelding 'run true'.
A trip to the Brisbane winter carnival could be on the table for Saganti, a Group 3 placegetter in France, with a good performance in Sydney.
Price and Kent Jr have a plan to target the Group 3 Chairman's Handicap (2000m) on Doomben 10,000 day in Queensland on May 17.
'The initial target is that race and we will be guided from there whether we go up in trip or stay around 2000m,' Kent Jr said.
'It is only his first real prep in Australia so we are still working him out but I am sure he will run really well on Saturday it's just a matter of if the race shape sets him up to win.'
Sakti is another Price and Kent Jr runner that the stable know is genuine stakes quality.
The Irish-bred import has already proven as much with several occasions in Ireland, winning in Listed grade and places on four occasions in stakes company.
She made her Australian debut with a sixth in the Group 2 Emancipation Stakes and drops back in grade in the Precise Air Benchmark 100 Handicap (1500m).
'I like her. She is a quality consistent stakes-class miler,' Kent Jr said.
'We were very surprised at her first Australian run that she put her head in the clouds and had her mouth open because she is lazy at home.
'We have reapplied the shadow roll which she wore overseas and added a crossover noseband.
'If she gets the first half of the race right I think she will run really well.'
Three hit the line with the outside prevailing! ðŸ'¸
State Of America gets up for @dpayneracing with @ZacLloydx on board! pic.twitter.com/nMihyddzEU
— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) April 9, 2025
Sakti could earn a crack at the $500,000 The Coast (1600m) if she perform up to expectations.
Stablemate Poppin' Champagne ($14) starved off retirement to the breeding barn with a terrific second-up victory at Warwick Farm last start.
She can score back-to-back wins for the first time in her career in the TAB Benchmark 78 Handicap (1600m).
'She is really in the zone this mare,' Kent Jr said.
'She was a pretty cankerous mare and would waste a heap of energy mid-race going to the barriers but our Sydney team have done a wonderful job with her to the point where Tommy Berry called me after the races and said she was a kids pony.
'I think she must have heard the rumours that she was potentially getting sold at the Mares sale because she arguably put in a career best performance and has 12 months more in the barn.'
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There is much more focus on recovery, building your body, recovering well, all this sort of stuff that prolongs your career. "I cannot expect from myself more than what I'm already doing, because I'm trying to squeeze everything I've got in my potential. If it's meant to be, very good. And if I'm giving 100 per cent every single day, I just cannot ask for more. I have to be fair with myself. I have to give a credit for myself." Could she get back in the top-10, closing in on her best position of sixth? "I've been in top-10 a few times, so I know this feeling. I know more or less what you need to be there. In my case, it's to be super consistent mentally and physically every single week, which is not easy, honestly, because I mean, we have a lot of tournaments in different countries. "The jet lag, just everything. Sometimes you just wake up and you don't feel the ball. Sometimes you wake up sick. Life happens!" she shrugged. "But at the end, I think it's important to stay always positive, when you are losing a couple of matches and then you feel that you are so bad. "It's very easy to get in the hole and very difficult to get out of it, so it's important to always stay on this right path and work hard." The standard of the women's game has rocketed, she believes. "Tennis is so physical. You know, everyone is athletic. There's no holes in the games of the girls, so it's tough. "And also, I mean, look at me. I'm not like an unbelievable physical girl, so I have to go out there and work every single day, try to be mentally there because for me, if I'm mentally dropping my level like five percent, I'm already not as competitive as I should be. "So it's tough, but this is part of the game, and my strength is to be consistent - and this is what I'm trying to do. 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