Australia: I Want One returns after freshening in handicap at Newcastle

I Want One, the Australian 3-year-old gelding, won three of his preceding four starts prior to finishing a quiet fifth of 12 in a handicap for 3- and 4-year-olds at Canterbury Racecourse in Sydney on February.

The loss led to a three-month rest for I Want One that ends on Monday with a start in a handicap at 6 3/4 furlongs at Newcastle Racecourse, north of Sydney.

I Want One, trained by Kris Lees, may be ready for his comeback. A winner of 3 of 8 starts, I Want One finished second in two schooling races from the gate, or barrier trials, at a half-mile and five furlongs in recent weeks in preparation for the race at Newcastle, which drew a full field of 10.

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This is a sharper distance than I Want One’s successes last December and January, when he won at distances ranging from 7 1/4 furlongs to a mile in a period of slightly more than six weeks. At Canterbury in February, I Want One took his customary position near the front of the field, but faded to lose by four lengths at 11-1.

The Canterbury race was a productive one. Race winner Pretty Amazing won the Group 3 Kembla Grange Classic at a mile for 3-year-old fillies at Goulburn Racecourse in her next start on March 11.

Aside from I Want One, the field at Newcastle includes Alpha Go and Miss Scalini, who were beaten in recent starts, but still showed promise.

Alpha Go is winless in four starts since a handicap at about six furlongs at Gundagai in early April. A winner of 5 of 25 starts, Alpha Go was fourth of eight, beaten 1 1/4 lengths, in a six-furlong handicap at Warwick Farm on June 13 against a higher class of runners than she will face at Newcastle.

Alpha Go tends to run as a stalker, while Miss Scalini typically races closer to the front.

Miss Scalini, a winner of 5 of 26 starts, was fifth of 10, beaten two lengths, in a handicap at 6 1/2 furlongs at Newcastle on June 4 in her first start since November. Overall, Miss Scalini displayed a promising performance in her comeback that indicates she can be better in this race.

Newcastle has a seven-race program that begins at 10:45 p.m. Eastern or 7:45 p.m. Pacific on Sunday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.