I Am a Star (NZ) an Easy Winner in Adelaide

I Am A Star (NZ) (I Am Invincible) completed a long-term plan early with a comfortable victory in Saturday’s A$119,100 Group 3 National Stakes (1200m) at Morphettville.

Jockey Steven King took advantage of barrier one at the start and parked behind the speed to the home turn before allowing I Am A Star to accelerate clear, going on to defeat Bangs (Snippetson) by three lengths with One Blink (Beneteau) a short head away third.

Trainer Shane Nichols explained the aim had been to achieve stakes form with I Am A Star.

“She’s owned by Matthew Sandblom, who is a prominent breeder, and the plan was to get some black type with her,” Nichols said.

“She was going to win a long way out. Once she settled where she did, I thought she was always going to be strong. I would have been disappointed if she had been rolled.”

Nichols said he is likely to send the two-year-old to the spelling paddock. “There’s nothing really for her here now and it’s a big ask to go to Queensland,” he said.

“Today we thought was a softer option than waiting till the spring in Melbourne to get some stakes form. Now that we’ve got that out of the way we can look at the fillies races in the spring.”

Nichols said he felt I Am A Star will have no trouble coping with some extra distance.

“I had her sister Band On The Run and thought she’d run a mile and this filly is a better horse than her,” he said. “We’ll aim high and see how we go. This is a pretty good filly. I don’t know how good but we’ll find out in the spring.”

– racenet.com.au