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By Ray Hickson

The Everest is about to go international! And while the UK is Nature Strip’s next mission both trainer Chris Waller and managing owner Rod Lyons are keen to be back at Randwick to defend his TAB Everest crown in October.

Trainer Chris Waller (Pic: Bradley Photos)

Fans of the world’s best sprinter had little cause for concern as James McDonald took control early in the Group 1 $2.5m Furphy TJ Smith Stakes (1200m) and he completed his threepeat, matching the feat of Chautauqua in 2015, 16 and 17.

Waller confirmed Nature Strip will tackle the Group 1 Platinum Jubilee Stakes (1200m) on the final day of Royal Ascot in June, while stablemate Home Affairs heads to the Group 1 King’s Stand Stakes (1000m) on opening day.

But defending the TAB Everest crown is at the forefront of plans for the rest of 2022.

“I’m sure the main aim is to have him back here for the Everest,’’ Waller said.

“Everybody respects Australian racing, especially our sprinters and middle distance horses, and it will be great to take horses like him and Home Affairs over there and put that flag up pretty high.

“We’ve been there before and had a bit of experience there, and you get familiar with what you’ve done before. It’s good to be taking the right horses, these two, two of the best sprinters in Australia.

“It’ll be one off the bucket list.”

Lyons said he had his worries about Nature Strip after his second-up defeat a month ago but is now looking forward to the challenges of England and a second Everest.

“I was worried, I’m a punter and I backed him two or three times so I was worried,’’ Lyons said.

“He said ‘don’t worry it’s grand final day and he’ll be right for the grand final’.

“England is our plan, go over two weeks before the race and come back as soon as we can and get ready for the Everest again.”

Any concerns about whether Nature Strip, a rising eight-year-old, was on the way down could be thrown out the window as it was vintage Nature Strip – he assumed the lead early, rolled along and gave them a spanking.

A well supported $2.30 favourite, Nature Strip easily accounted for his great rival Eduardo ($4.60) by 3-1/4 lengths while Godolphin colt Paulele ($12) ran third.

The cult hero Shelby Sixtysix loomed up in the straight but weakened into seventh while Masked Crusader, currently the only horse locked in for a TAB Everest slot, could beat only two home.

Waller conceded he probably took the Challenge Stakes for granted with Nature Strip, after he ran third behind Eduardo a month earlier, and though he didn’t trial the horse publicly a private jump out told him he was ready to peak on ‘grand final’ day.

“I didn’t know whether we took it too cheap. I think Nature Strip’s biggest arsenal is his speed and putting the horses out of their comfort zone,’’ he said.

“What can you do, you don’t panic. I gave him a jump out at home, he won that. I was going to put it on social media but he won it by that far.

“He’s a good horse over 1200m and if you want to go with him you’re in trouble.

“Nash (Rawiller on Eduardo) was a bit cheeky taking a sit behind him, trying to get in the slip stream. It looked good and he would have been a hero if it came off.”

Nature Strip wins his third TJ Smith Stakes

McDonald described Nature Strip, who has now won just under $18 million in prizemoney, as a freak and said as soon as he jumped on in the mounting yard he knew the horse meant business.

“He gives me goosebumps every time a grand final comes around,’’ he said.

“I know he’s tuned up to the minute, he does everything so well at home. Chris (Waller) has been so happy with him and when he sets one for a race there’s none better.

“It gives you so much confidence, the barrier allowed us to get into a nice rhythm the whole way and when he pricked his ears at the 400m, I was like “What’s going on here?”.

“A real goosebump feeling winning three TJs on him.”

Check out the replays and results from Day 1 of The Star Championships at Royal Randwick