Warp Speed to tick off another Cup for Goodwin

By Glenn Davis

Trainer Mark Goodwin is hoping to tick another country Cup off his bucket list when Warp Speed continues his North Queensland sojourn in the Cairns Cup on Saturday.

Warp Speed finished third in the Listed Caloundra Cup at the Sunshine Coast in the middle of July before Goodwin sent him away on a North Queensland country Cups campaign.

The eight-year-old overcame a troublesome trip to win the Townsville Cup on August 3 before being overhauled by Tasmanian galloper Hype when second in the Mackay Cup a week later.

Gold Coast jockey Michael Cahill made the trip north to ride Warp Speed in both the Townsville and Mackay Cups and will continue his association in the Cairns Cup.

“His Mackay Cup run was very good as the leaders put on the pace 500 metres from home and Michael didn’t want to go so soon but he had to,” Goodwin said.

“That allowed the back markers to finish over the top which Hype did, but he beat us fair and square and he’s a very good horse.”

Goodwin, whose daughter Leanne died in a race fall as a jockey in Roma in 1998, has never had a runner in Cairns but has won a host of country Cups in South East Queensland.

“I’ve won a lot of country Cups back home and out west, but I’ve never been to any of these North Queensland tracks,” Goodwin said.

“The closest I’ve come to Cairns was flying over it on the way to Macau one year.”

Warp Speed travelled to Townsville following his Mackay Cup run but won’t make the trip to Cairns until race day.

“We’ll leave Townsville on Saturday morning as I believe horses travel best on race days,” Goodwin said.

“I do it a lot back home whenever we go west.

“I took five horses on a seven-hour float trip from Roma to Wyandra one day and went home winning with every horse.”

Goodwin is undecided on Warp Speed’s plans after the Cairns Cup but hasn’t ruled out the Toowoomba Cup on his home track next month.

“I’ve never had a runner in the Toowoomba Cup but if he freshens up well enough after Cairns I might have a go,” he said.

Warp Speed’s mother Prized Gem won the Brisbane Cup in 2002 for former Kiwi trainer Murray Baker.

The son of Star Witness has gone on to be a great money spinner for his new owners who paid $16,000 for him.

“Glen and Lisa Morton had him with Brian Smith before he had one run for Wayne Baker and he’s won more than $300,000 for his owners now,” Goodwin said.