Golden Slipper winner Guest House set for stud inspection as $25m race begins

Golden Slipper winner Guest House’s next appointment is for an inspection by a major stud on Tuesday as the race to buy the Home Affairs colt begins.

Mick Price and Michael Kent Junior are already in negotiations for a stud deal for Guest House, who will head for a spell to target the spring, with Coolmore the logical frontrunners.

“We didn’t enter him for the Sires, and there is no real value in running him there, so we will get him into a paddock,” Price said.

“We have some good people coming to see him on Tuesday, and if a deal is done, they will be part of programming him into the future.”

These days, a stud deal usually would involve an upfront payment of upward of $25 million, with kickers for winning races like The Everest, Coolmore Stud Stakes and Golden Rose, all of which would be open to Guest House.

Price watched on from Melbourne as Guest House burst clear to win the Golden Slipper by 1-1/2 lengths as he finally got his share of luck in running and in a race run at good tempo.

He was rated in the top dozen runs for the afternoon and compared favourably with the other sprints on the program – the Galaxy and Darby Munro Stakes.

Guest House came through the run in outstanding condition with Price revealing he has gone from 564kg to 563kg in the stable’s weekly weigh-in on Sunday mornings.

“It is great to get that win, and it is job done as a two-year-old, really,” Price said.

The stable will look to continue its Group 1 roll with Sabaj in the Australian Cup at Flemington on Saturday.

The Cranbourne Cup winner from the spring was fourth in the All Star Mile behind Tom Kitten and will step out to 2000m for the first time.

Mark Zahra had been booked when Price and Kent Junior decided to run in the Australian Cup over next month’s Doncaster, but after the leading jockey was suspended for a whip breach on Saturday, Beau Mertens will retain the ride.

“It is unfortunate that Mark got suspended, so I had to go and put my arm around Beau and say ‘you’re back on him’ yesterday. He knows him really well,” Price said.

“It is a good time to try him over the trip.”