Lloyd eyes more Group 1 glory to cap stunning run

The past couple of weeks have delivered a couple of Group 1 wins for rising star Zac Lloyd but a Doncaster or Derby on Saturday would cap a special month.

Lloyd was at his best, winning the Golden Slipper on Guest House, before getting everything out of Belle Cheval in the Vinery Stud Stakes, and it was the first time he rode both horses.

What would make Saturday stand out is that Lloyd rides Linebacker and One Step Closer for John O’Shea and Tom Charlton, where he has become part of the team.

“They have been really good to me and to win another big one for them would be outstanding,” Lloyd said. “It doesn’t come any better than winning Group 1s, but I have been part of Linebacker’s preparation and getting him there.”

“It just adds something if he can win the Doncaster. I’m part of the team there, and that is very important.”

Lloyd was sounded out about the ride on Doncaster favourite Sheza Alibi, but was already booked for Linebacker, who he won a Randwick Guineas on last year.

“It is hard for me to do 49 and I had a ride on a horse that is really well weighted,” Lloyd said. “He has drawn a good gate now, so are just hoping he goes like he didn’t first-up rather than second-up.”

Although Linebacker finished seventh in both the Canterbury Stakes and George Ryder Stakes, he found the line in the Canterbury before fading in the Ryder on a soft track.

“I think he is going really well and would like to get a good track, which will allow him to show his best,” Lloyd said. “This is the race we have been looking forward to for quite a while.”

One Step Closer, a $34 Derby outsider, has been around the mark in the spring and autumn, running fourth in the Moonee Valley Vase, Victoria Derby and Rosehill Guineas.

He will appreciate getting out in trip to 2400m as he looks to turn the tables on Observer and Green Spaces from the Guineas.

“He is a real stayer, and the extra trip is going to help him,” Lloyd said. “He has always been the same look for a trip, and he has that little more maturity now.”