The Moonee Valley Vase was the race that solidified Observer as the horse to beat in last year’s Victoria Derby and Danny O’Brien is hoping it can do likewise with True Rebel this year.
The pedigree-defying gelding will be out to frank his spot as favourite for Saturday’s Group 1 Classic when he contests this Saturday’s $400,000 Group 2 Vase at Flemington.
The son of Rebel Dane heads in off an unlucky second placing over 1600m at Caulfield last Wednesday, which followed victory in a 1525m Geelong maiden and a debut third over 1300m at Bendigo on September 6 in what is proving one of spring’s hottest country maidens.
O’Brien considers it a good grounding for his first try beyond 1600m.
“He’s only had three starts in is life, but they’ve all been full of merit,” O’Brien said.
“He’s a lovely, relaxed gelding who’s done really well the whole spring.
“He’s stepping out to the 2000 metres, like most of them for the first time, but he’s had a really good preparation for it.”
True Rebel has made a mockery of his bloodlines to race to the head of Derby markets at $4 ahead of this weekend’s final major lead-up, which was last year won by eventual Derby victor Observer.
Rebel Dane was a dual Group 1-winning sprinter whose most famous product is Golden Slipper winner Fireburn, while True Rebel is out of the Helmet mare Spirit Medium, who is from a sharp Darley family that includes Sessions and Renaissance.
True Rebel had six jumpouts across two preparations before he got to his Bendigo debut, which gives O’Brien confidence he can handle his impending assignments.
“He had a good grounding in the autumn as a two-year-old but we elected not to run him and he went out and actually got gelded because he’s a big fella and then got a good grounding over the winter,” O’Brien said.
“He’d had half a dozen jumpouts before he went to the races the first time. He was really good that day at Bendigo, he was good here at Geelong winning his maiden and there’s no doubt he should have won again on Wednesday.
“So he’s on the right pathway, he’s progressive, he’s well and he’s in the right race.”
True Rebel has been ridden exclusively by Billy Egan to date, but Blake Shinn takes over in the Vase with the $2.20 favourite to start from barrier three.
