The Astrologist does Australia proud in Al Quoz Sprint

The Corstens-trained veteran, a $21 fixed odds chance with TAB, travelled comfortably in the straight-course dash and was part of a line of four runners down the middle of the track with a furlong to run.The six-year-old tried valiantly under the urgings of Damian Lane but was outgunned by $51 outsider Danyah, with race favourite Al Suhail also close-up in third.“We‘re super proud of the horse. He’s such a tough and honest horse and we always knew, if we got him here in as good an order as we could, he was going to be right in the finish,” assistant trainer Dom Sutton said.“He gave his all, obviously it’s a little bit gut-wrenching to go down by such a small margin but overall, we couldn’t be more proud of him. “He’s such a marvel, running two weeks ago in the Newmarket Handicap, coming through a 14-hour flight and performing like that. “We are looking forward to getting that Group 1 with him in the near future,” Sutton said.The Astrologist, who has now placed in three Group 1s, is set to continue his overseas campaign in the United Kingdom.“We’ve been invited to Royal Ascot so he won’t go back to Australia, he’ll go to Newmarket and to [new trainer] Marco Botti,” managing owner Nathan Bennett said.The Astrologist could run twice during the Royal Ascot carnival, with both the King’s Stand and the Platinum Jubilee Stakes on the agenda for the straight-course specialist.“It’s a shame in a way that he was beaten but it was a huge run. I’m delighted for them and wherever he goes in the future, he’s an exciting horse,” Botti said post-race.The Astrologist continued the fine record of Australian-trained sprinters in the Al Quoz, with Ortensia and Buffering winning the event in 2012 and 2016 respectively. Via news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site https://www.news.com.au