Racing
Aria chases Blue Diamond blowout
I Am Aria will chase her maiden success when she lines up in the Blue Diamond at Caulfield.
If luck had fallen the way of I Am Aria, the Mark Walker-trained filly could be entering the Blue Diamond Stakes unbeaten.
Instead, I Am Aria has filled a placing in her two lead-ups, running second on debut in the Blue Diamond Preview before finishing third in the Blue Diamond Prelude.
Walker's assistant-trainer Ben Gleeson is convinced the Preview and Prelude form, the filly's and colts and geldings' divisions, is the strongest form and says I Am Aria is one of the chances ahead of Melbourne's premier Group 1 race for two-year-olds over 1200m at Caulfield on Saturday.
I Am Aria is currently a $34 chance in betting which sees the Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr-trained colts Big Sky ($4.20) and Guest House ($4.50) at the head of the market.
Gleeson said I Am Aria's draw of barrier six – she will come into four if the emergencies do not gain a start – was ideal.
"She's a filly that puts herself in the race and has led up, unfortunately, in two starts without having a backside to follow," Gleeson said.
"She's been very gallant in defeat. She's probably been entitled to drop out, but she's been there whacking away at the finish.
"If she can find a backside on Saturday, she's going to appreciate stepping up to 1200 (metres) and hopefully she's finishing off."
The Blue Diamond has been the target for I Am Aria soon after she returned from a brief break after early education, that included two jump-outs/trials, during the spring.
"You probably don't expect an I Am Invincible filly to get here, especially with the physique she has," Gleeson said.
"She's a big, strong three-year-old type of filly and whatever she does now she is going to be better in the spring. She's has copped the work, she's very sound and has a fantastic mind.
"She's always shown us the characteristics that she could get here. To run second and third in the Preview and the Prelude, there's probably no better form and history probably shows horses that run in those two are the ones that are generally around the mark on final day.
"She's done nothing wrong, anyway."
Gleeson said this year's bunch of two-year-olds was an even lot with no standout, not like in previous years when there has been one, or two, that dominate the local scene.
He said the Melbourne two-year-old had gone interstate and performed well.
"It will probably take until Saturday for a star to emerge," Gleeson said.
"It's a nice crop of two-year-olds at the moment, they're going to Sydney and running well, they're going to Magic Millions and winning.
"The horses that have been down here are leading the way.
"I think the six or seven from the Previews and the Preludes are the standouts.
"There has been lots of eye-catching runs and a lot will come down to who gets the right run in the race and our filly should certainly get that."
Craig Williams, searching for a second Blue Diamond success after scoring on Catchy in 2017, has the ride on I Am Aria again on Saturday.
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