Delta déjà vu at Moonee Valley

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The Inglis 2YO Banner at Moonee Valley on Cox Plate Day has some exciting Victorian bred juveniles lining up for a crack at the $250,000 in prizemoney and a lucrative $30,000 in Super VOBIS bonuses.

Young Mornington trainer Amy Johnston is confident of her entry Delta D’Or and, like many of the runners, the Master of Design gelding is a debutant.

Delta D’Or was bred by the late Kevin Heffernan and is out of the Encosta De Lago mare Gold Delta who is a sibling of black type winners Gold in Dubai and Gold Busker.

Amy bought Delta D’Or as a yearling for $30,000 in conjunction with David Raphael’s Stallion Racing at the Inglis VOBIS Gold sale in April.

“David picked him out and we bought him together with a couple of other fellas,” Amy said.  “I actually used to work at the Freedmans (training operation) when they use to have Master of Design and Delta D’Or reminds me a lot of the horse himself.”

Following a gallop by Delta D’Or at Moonee Valley’s annual Breakfast with the Best on Tuesday morning, Amy said she was really pleased with his work.  “We weren’t going out there to break any track records.  It was just nice confident work going into Saturday.  He just keeps on stepping up and improving all of the time.”

Jockey Stephen Baster rode him on Tuesday morning and was happy with the work.  “He had a jump out at Balnarring and trialled quite nice.  There’s not a lot of him but he’s quite well put together and is all heart.”

Delta D’Or will be one of two runners in the Inglis Banner for Swettenham Stud sire Master of Design.  The other is Kinetic Design which was stakes placed at Flemington in the Maribyrnong Trial Stakes earlier this month.

Other Victorian sires represented in the race include Swettenham stallion Equiano (Fr) with his colt Valliano and Swettenham graduate Sweet Sherry, who won the Maribyrnong Trial, is also engaged.