Graeme Jose isn’t sure whether to listen to his heart or his head ahead of Tuesday night’s Group 2 Gosford Cup final (515m), where he boasts two “great each-way chances” in Aston Shine and Lots Of Chatter.
Both sprinters have ventured interstate in pursuit of a breakthrough Group success after finishing second in Victorian country cups late in 2021, Lots Of Chatter at Bendigo and Aston Shine at Cranbourne.
Jose understandably has a soft spot for 91-start veteran Lots Of Chatter, which has won 33 races since starting his career in September 2019 and is lining up in his fourth G2 event, three of which have come in the last three months.
However, the G1-winning Catani trainer feels Box 1 could give Aston Shine a decisive advantage in the $40,000 to-the-winner Cup final, which is race 7 at 9.14pm on Tuesday.
“I would really like to see Lots Of Chatter win but I think Aston Shine might be my best chance, only because he’s drawn ‘the red’,” said Jose, who’s been a regular visitor to Gosford in recent years, qualifying for the 2018 Cup final with One Required.
“Aston Shine is normally a genuinely good beginner, while Lots Of Chatter takes five or ten strides to get going, but once he hits the corner he’ll drive straight through, as he showed in his heat.
“Aston Shine runs very lows 5s at Sandown, while Lots Of Chatter is around 5.10 to 5.12s, so there’s a length and a bit between them early.”
Interestingly, TAB rates Lots Of Chatter at $6 as clearly Jose’s best chance, with Aston Shine looking ‘huge overs’ at $11, after initially being marked at $15.
GOSFORD CUP HEAT WINNERS (Fastest to slowest)
29.14sec Wow
29.16sec Zipping Kyrgios
29.37sec Aston Shine
29.37sec Lots Of Chatter
The market is dominated by star NSW duo Wow (Box 5), the defending champion, and Zipping Kyrgios (Box 8), at $2.15 and $2.40 respectively.
Remarkably, Aston Shine and Lots Of Chatter, sons of super sire Fernando Bale, clocked identical time in their heat victories last Tuesday, both posting 29.37sec, and Jose is confident they’re open to significant improvement.
“Absolutely sensational,” Jose said of the heat double.
“Time-wise, I was more than happy with them. They hadn’t seen the joint for over 12 months and with the travel it was a big ask.
G2 GOSFORD CUP (515m)
Tuesday, Race 7, 9.14pm – First prize $40,000
1 ASTON SHINE (Graeme Jose, Catani VIC)
2 FIRE LEGEND (Mark Moroney, Doyalson North NSW)
3 LOTS OF CHATTER (Graeme Jose, Catani VIC)
4 VAMOS PENNY (Kerry Drynan, Llandilo NSW)
5 WOW (Danielle Matic, Canyonleigh NSW)
6 YOU KNOW TREE (Lisa Lamb, Swan Bay NSW)
7 IMPRESS SHADES (Jason Mackay, Kurri Kurri NSW)
8 ZIPPING KYRGIOS (John Finn, Cranebrook NSW)
9 ZIPPING MASERATI (Jason Mackay, Kurri Kurri NSW)
10 MR. TICKET (Darryl Thomas, Sawyers Gully NSW)
“Aston Shine hadn’t done anything at all for nearly a month, bar a 400m hit-out the previous Thursday, while I threw Lots Of Chatter in a 450m at Ballarat a couple of weeks earlier, so he was very fresh as well.
“I thought that if I got through to the final, they could find two or three lengths, which they will need to.
“Wow only ran home slightly quicker than my two – about .02sec – and Zipping Kyrgios, which ran home by far the fastest, has drawn off the track and I don’t think he’ll be happy out there. Wow is the one I’m most worried about.
“I feel there’s a lot of plusses with both my dogs and I really think I’m in the race up to my eyeballs.”
Aston Shine (3) finds the front in his all-the-way G2 Gosford Cup heat victory. Photos courtesy Steve Whalland.
