Ray Hickson
Trainer Tom Charlton is confident promising three-year-old Graffiti Tycoon learned valuable lessons from his debut at the start of the month that will serve him well at Canterbury on Wednesday.
And a switch around in barrier fortunes will allow jockey Zac Lloyd to ride a very different race in the TAB Plate (1250m).
Charlton said it was decided to allow the gelding to find his feet and attempt to get cover at his first outing at Warwick Farm where he ultimately made a mid-race move and was run down by Mr Miller.
“He’s a very talented horse but a raw individual and a bit immature,” Charlton said.
“He didn’t execute his race as well as he could but overall, it was highly encouraging. We just need him to take those steps forward and we’re confident he has.
“With more racing, you’ll see a fully furnished and confident individual.”
Graffiti Tycoon came up with barrier one and Charlton said that would be used to his advantage around Canterbury.
“It helps with the softer gate to come out neutral and get him in a rhythm,” he said.
“He doesn’t need to be settling near the rear of the field.
“We tried to drop him in and get him to do things correct and not send him any message, so I think the draw helps him from that respect.
“He has a high cruising speed, a big action, and there’s no reason why he can’t run really well.”
There are no plans at this stage for Graffiti Tycoon to be thrown in the deep end.
Charlton said a super-impressive win might tempt him to look at his options but that “baby steps” was the most likely approach.
“This preparation we’ll probably keep him in shallow waters, he needs to learn a little bit,” he said.
“I’m not ruling anything out, but I don’t think we’ll overtax him this preparation.”
It’s fair to say Scoop The Pool was unfortunate to run into a progressive type when he recorded his third placing on end for the campaign and Charlton fears that may happen again in the Agency Real Estate Handicap (1900m).
“He probably meets another one in the Ciaron Maher runner who has some decent form,” he said.
