Australia: Daysan stretches in Royal Randwick handicap

Daysan is a 5-year-old Kentucky-bred gelding by Temple City who began his career in England but is thriving in Australia these days.

Daysan has won his last two starts in handicaps – at distances of 1 1/4 miles at Hawkesbury on Aug. 31 and at 1 7/16 miles on Sept. 18 at Newcastle. Daysan has won 2 of 3 starts in Australia.

In the two recent wins, Daysan closed from off the pace to take the lead late, suggesting a start in a handicap at 1 1/2 miles on turf on the Kensington course at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney on Wednesday will be a suitable trip.

Trained by Kris Lees, Daysan will be ridden by Hugh Bowman, who was aboard for the win at Hawkesbury.

Daysan has won 3 of 7 starts. He is currently owned by a large partnership, but raced for Sheikh Hamdan’s Shadwell Stable in England where he won once in four starts – in a minor allowance race at 1 11/16 miles on the synthetic track at Chelmsford City near London last September.

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Daysan is out of Malibu Pier, a three-time graded stakes winner in Southern California for the late B. Wayne Hughes and trainer Carla Gaines.

Daysan is part of a field of 10 in the fourth of seven races on a program that begins at midnight Eastern on Wednesday, or 9 p.m. Pacific on Tuesday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.

This distance also will suit Chains of Honour, a 5-year-old gelding who has won 3 of 14 starts. Chains of Honour is winless in 10 starts since the Group 3 Grand Prix Stakes at 1 3/8 miles at Eagle Farm Racecourse in December 2019.

Chains of Honour’s form tailed off in 2020 and earlier this year, but a second in a race at this level at 1 1/2 miles on the Kensington course on Sept. 1 is more encouraging. Since then, Chains of Honour has switched stables, going from the team of Gerald Ryan and Sterling Alexiou to the more high-profile operation of Ciaron Maher and David Eustace.