Chautauqua (Aus) (Encosta De Lago {Aus}) will remain in Australia for a spring campaign with his ultimate international target being the G1 Longines Hong Kong Sprint at Sha Tin in December, part-owner Rupert Legh told racing.com. The Michael, Wayne and John Hawkes-trained 5-year-old had the option of taking part in the Global Sprint Challenge, a series that offered a $1-million bonus should a horse win a leg of the series in three countries in the same calendar year. Chautauqua's victories in the G1 Chairman's Sprint Prize at Sha Tin in May and the G1 Black Caviar Lightning at Flemington in February put him within one win of the bonus. Connections however would have had to point the ace sprinter to the G1 Sprinters S. in Japan in October to accomplish the feat.
Outlining the plan for the five-time Group 1 winner, Legh told racing.com, “We're going to leave him in Australia. He's an Australian horse, so we'll let the Australian public enjoy a great racehorse.”
That means fans can look forward to seeing Chautauqua back in action at Moonee Valley Sept. 30 in the G1 Moir S., before bidding for a repeat win in the G1 Manikato S. three weeks later. In confirming targets Legh was mindful of how the best laid plans can go astray and he added, “At this stage Plan A–and Plan A can change all the time–is we've elected to go Moir, Manikato, Darley Classic and finally Hong Kong.”
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