At 25, Matthew Brown will stand out as trainers leg their jockeys up for the Caulfield Guineas on Saturday.

Mr Exclusive will be Brown’s first Group 1 runner in three years as a trainer and he thinks his colt can finish in the top five.

Mr Exclusive finished fourth in the Caulfield Guineas Prelude behind Native Solder at his last start. Brown trained his 10th winner of the season on Thursday when Kalalo won at Mornington.

Mr Exclusive is raced by a syndicated headed by his father Scott and his mother Linda.

His father bred Mr Exclusive and is Brown’s biggest backer as he owns the property which he trains from at Cranbourne. Scott Brown has Group 1-winning experience having part-owned Angelic Light and Turn Me Loose.

“I’m stoked to have a runner in a Caulfield Guineas,” Brown said. “It’s very exciting and hopefully having Group One runners will be something I do on a regular basis.”

He is hoping his next Group 1 runner may not be that far away as he’s aiming Exclusively Ours for the VRC Oaks.

Brown will give 32 year-old jockey Brian Higgins his first ride in a Group 1 race.

“He does a lot of work for us and rides a lot for us so it’s exciting to give Brian his opportunity as well.”

PRICE EXPECTS SEABROOK TO STRIKE BACK
Glenn McFarlane
MICK Price is confident his Group 1-winning filly Seabrook can bounce back to form in Saturday’s Thousand Guineas following a frustrating trip to Sydney to take on the boys in the Golden Rose last month.

Seabrook ran second last, beaten seven lengths behind The Autumn Sun. But a post-race assessment showed the filly pulled up with the thumps, an electrolyte imbalance.

But two strong gallops where she finished alongside Price’s Caulfield Guineas hope Tavisan this week and the addition of blinkers has given the trainer hope the $21 chance could be highly competitive in the race, where $2.60 chance Smart Melody leads the markets.

“I think you can just put a line through it (the Golden Rose),” Price said. “That’s 100 per cent not her. I worked her with Tavisan (last) Saturday morning and again here (on Tuesday) morning and there was nothing between them. She is going well.”

Seabrook, a daughter of Hinchinbrook, had an outstanding two-year career, winning the Group 1 Champagne Stakes and running fifth in the Golden Slipper, beaten just over two lengths. But after a solid first-up run in the McNeil Stakes, she performed well below expectations on the return to Sydney last month, which Price puts down to the stress of travelling.

“She had the thumps, which you will read in the stewards report,” Price said of the Golden Rose disappointment. “Thumps is like an electrolyte imbalance, from the distress of travel, I believe.”

Price said his $17 Caulfield Guineas hope Tavisan was in good order, but needed to take an extra step or two on the colt’s last-start second to Native Soldier in the Caulfield Guineas Prelude.

“He has been around it a bit, but I felt we were launching at Native Soldier (in the Prelude), but we couldn’t get him,” he said. “He was fit and well ridden, and perfectly sound, and having a red-hot go, but he wasn’t able to pick him up.”

“I couldn’t have him any better, but he has got to be good enough on the day.”