Australia: Half to Black Caviar, All Too Hard starting year at Caulfield

All Too Hard, a 4-year-old half-brother to the unbeaten sprinter Black Caviar, makes his first start since October in Saturday’s Group 1 C.F. Orr Stakes at Caulfield Racecourse in Australia.

The $412,000 Orr Stakes is run over seven furlongs and is the first Group 1 race of 2013 in Australia.

All Too Hard won the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas and was second in the Cox Plate last October. A three-time stakes winner, All Too Hard, who is by Casino Prince, is considered a candidate for the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot in England in June.

The Orr Stakes will be All Too Hard’s first start for Vinery Stud, who acquired the colt from Nathan Tinkler in December.

All Too Hard is part of a field of nine that includes Callanish, who is unbeaten after eight starts and is making his Group 1 debut, and King Mufhasa, a 9-year-old who has won 10 Group 1 races in Australia and New Zealand.

◗ Mr Moet reverts to a sprint after a second-place finish in the Group 2 Perth Cup over 1 1/2 miles at Ascot Racecourse in Perth, Australia, on Jan. 1. Mr Moet won the Group 1 Railway Stakes over a mile at that track in November.