Snowden hopes inside draw puts ex-Godolphin galloper on winning path

Trainer Paul Snowden felt lucky when Australian Bloodstock sent Tartaglia, a son of one of his favourite mares during his time as Darley’s Melbourne foreman, to his Port Macquarie stable after buying him in April.

Since then, though, Snowden has not had a lot of luck with the four-year-old former Godolphin-owned Too Darn Hot gelding, with one Taree win from five starts.

Paul Snowden-trained Navy Buoy wins the Highway Handicap at Randwick on December 20.Credit: Getty Images

Snowden hopes Tartaglia can change that on Saturday and make the most of an inside draw at Randwick to keep his perfect training record in Highway Handicaps alive.

Navy Buoy scored an all-the-way win in the country-only city race last Saturday at Randwick, where Snowden trained with his father, Peter, before going solo at the start of last season. Lunaite, his other Highway runner so far, also won in his only attempt.

Tartaglia, a $60,000 Inglis Digital buy in late April, was a midweek city winner and runner-up across nine starts with Godolphin.

He finished second on debut for Snowden at Coffs Harbour, then was three-lengths ninth at Newcastle from a wide gate. He was held up badly for a run when 11th at Port Macquarie before the Taree win, then was last at Eagle Farm in his most recent run on November 8.

Trainer Paul Snowden.Credit: Getty

He was an $11 (TAB) top weight from gate one in Saturday’s class 3 1200m Highway, where apprentice Will Stanley takes off three kilograms to bring him down to 59kg.

“I’ve had it just this preparation and we’ve had some bad barriers and some unlucky runs with it,” Snowden said.

“It’s had a bit of a freshen up since it last raced, in Brisbane. It got caught in the fires the other week. It was supposed to run at Gosford last Thursday week, but we couldn’t get down there so it’s been a bit frustrating for the owners as well.

“He’s the top-rater for a reason, so I knew he was going to get the weight, so we got the claim well before the fields came out.

“Hopefully from the draw he can just lay up behind a nice tempo, that’s where we need to be, just stalking with a little bit of room to move late.”

Tartaglia’s dam, Dysphonia, a daughter of Lonhro, won seven races, including the 2010 Festival Stakes and 2011 Scone Cup. Her final run was third in the group 1 Myer Classic.

“He’s out of a mare I’m very fond of because I trained her in Melbourne for a number of years,” he said.

“She won a Scone Cup, which is my hometown cup. She won at Caulfield, Flemington, she was one of my favourites, so I was lucky when they said they’d send him up to me.

“He’s nothing like her. She would get out over a mile, a good 1400m horse. The horse is probably on the sharper side of things when kept fresh and he’s got a nice sprint.

“[Australian Bloodstock] are a well-established organisation, they place their horses with multiple trainers and I’ve been lucky enough to get three or four off them to train, so it’s been very good.

“I did strike a relationship with them before I left Snowden Racing, so they’ve followed me.”

Tartaglia is ineligible for the Country Championships because horses need to be with their country trainer a year out from the April final. Snowden, though, hoped Tartaglia could measure up to other elite country races.

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