MATT Cumani has already experienced winning a VRC St Leger (2800m) with a maiden and he takes a pair of them into the historic staying race for three-year-olds at Flemington on Saturday.
His pair are in divergent positions in the market, with Deal Done Fast the favourite at $3.70 and Te Taniwha the rank outsider at $151.
In 2023, Dunwoody won the race when it was held at Sandown at $61 after finishing unplaced in a Bendigo Maiden.
Deal Done Fast, while still a maiden, has demonstrated his class with a third in the Victoria Derby, to Observer his best effort in a race. He is an 82-rated horse and has a seven-point advantage over his closest rival in the ratings, which is Ciaron Maher’s Tasmanian Derby winner Dad And Dave.
At his last start, Deal Done Fast finished eighth in the Australian Derby at Randwick behind Green Spaces.
While Cumani acknowledges that Deal Done Fast looks well placed, he is concerned by his habit of being slow away, which he has been in his three starts this time in.
“He’s doing a few things wrong in his races at the moment and I’m worried him being slowly away and slow into stride is becoming a pattern as he’s done it all three starts this preparation, which has become frustrating,” Cumani told Racing.com.
Cumani has booked former Irish jockey Cian MacRedmond to ride Deal Done Fast.
It will be MacRedmond’s first ride at Flemington, but Cumani is happy to back the 25-year-old in.
Cumani said that with most of the top jockeys heading to Adelaide, he decided to book a jockey who knew Deal Done Fast, as he had ridden him in trackwork during the week at Ballarat.
The former Irish jockey moved permanently to Australia at the end of 2024 and has ridden 46 winners, consisting of 42 in country Victoria and four in South Australia.
Cumani said the 2800m will suit Deal Done Fast and the longer event should offset him being slowly away.
Cumani will saddle up Te Taniwha in the VRC St Leger and he reflected on his win with Dunwoody in 2023 as a reason why he will start in the race and isn’t without a chance.
At his last start, Te Taniwha finished third in an Echuca Maiden over 2100m.
Cumani said the VRC St Leger was Te Taniwha’s aim for the campaign and while he hadn’t lived up to expectations, he thought he could run a cheeky race and finish in the top five.
