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By Greg Prichard

Scone trainer Rod Northam will give Palazzo Prince the chance to audition for a run in The Kosciuszko at the last Saturday city meeting before the winning slot-holders are drawn and the field for the $2 million race starts to take shape.

Trainer Rod Northam

“He’ll race again on September 7 in a Class 3 TAB Highway over 1200 metres at Randwick,” Northam said.

“It fits perfectly into his campaign and it’s also perfect timing with the slot draw for The Kosciuszko coming up soon after that.

“If he could win next start and do it impressively then he will have put his hand up to have a crack at something like the Kosciuszko.

“It’s worth too much money not to run if you can get a start. You’re certainly not going to knock it back.”

The Kosciuszko will be run over 1200 metres at Randwick on October 19.

Punters can go in the draw to have a horse run for them in The Kosciuszko by purchasing sweepstakes tickets at $5 each via TAB through agencies, the TAB app, pubs and clubs and at race meetings until September 9.

The 14 slot-holders will be drawn on September 11 and they will then be able to do a deal on a prizemoney split with the connections of eligible runners trained in the NSW country or ACT.

Palazzo Prince, a five-year-old gelding which has had just four career starts for two wins and a second, was responsible for a booming first-up run this campaign at Randwick on August 24.

After being well back to the home turn and then having to try to thread his way through the field, Palazzo Prince didn’t get a clear run until 250 metres out and rattled home for second to Atmospheric Rock in a Class 2 TAB Highway over 1100 metres.

“A Class 3 is probably a couple of lengths quicker, but he hadn’t raced since late February and hadn’t had a trial so he’ll be much better off for that run,” Northam said.

“The wet weather screwed us around a bit. The trial he was going to run in was called off and I don’t like to let them go too hard on the heavy tracks in training. When it’s wet all the time you just can’t put the work into them that you normally would.

“I had to run him in that race to get him going and he’ll improve a few lengths from that. I was wrapped in the run.

“He needed the run, but I knew he’d still run well just on natural ability. He’s still very raw and the brain hasn’t quite figured it out yet, so he’s doing it mainly on natural ability at the moment. He’s working it out more with each run.”

Northam said Palazzo Prince was lightly raced because he had undergone knee surgery as a young horse and was given plenty of time to get over that.

“I’m certainly looking at the Country Championships next autumn with him, so it won’t be the end of the world if he doesn’t make it into the field for The Kosciuszko.” he said.

“But he’s in the position where he can tell us if he has developed enough to be a chance in a race like The Kosciuszko.

Palazzo Prince runs second at Randwick on August 24

“I thought at the start of the campaign that we’d give him a couple of runs in suitable races for him and in front of the people who are buying tickets, so if it’s meant to work out it will.”

Palazzo Prince is a $51 chance with TAB to win The Kocsiuszko, but would obviously firm significantly if he hit a home run at his next start.

Northam’s last runner in The Kosciuszko was his well-performed mare Spiranac, which finished third in the race in 2021 and sixth the following year.

Buy your $5 tickets in The Kosciuszko here