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By Ray Hickson

Godolphin trainer James Cummings may well resist the urge to chase the ‘big fish’ with promising mare Commemorative this spring but he’s expecting something of a first-up statement at Randwick on Saturday.

Godolphin trainer James Cummings (Pic: Bradley Photos).

The lightly raced four-year-old is one of a few up and comers returning in the Group 3 $250,000 James Squire Toy Show Quality (1100m) on or near the limit weight with the handicaps compressed by the presence of 113 rated mare Lady Laguna.

That’s the main concern from Cummings, but he said on SEN that the 53kg still appeals to him and you can’t account for the potential she has.

“I think she can win the race,’’ he said.

“There’s no doubt 7.5kg out of the handicap makes things hard for her. But you put that to one side and think about the potential she’s shown so far, the way she’s graduated to being a stakes winner.

“Even though she is out of the handicap she’s still at the bottom of the weights and I think she’s entitled to be running well.

“From a timing perspective it’s a good position to be kicking off on.”

Commemorative, $3.10 with TAB on Thursday, has won three of her seven starts and posted her first stakes win in the Denise’s Joy at the Scone carnival in May.

It’s interesting to note that Commemorative is a $51 chance in the TAB Everest market but Cummings said for now he’s likely to be conservative with the mare who will start her spring campaign with an 83 rating and plenty of room to move.

“By and large we think we will be taking the small fish, but you just never know,’’ he said.

“We always keep our options open but I think the low hanging fruit will be the way to go.”

Cummings is keeping an open mind about what Zardozi’s ultimate spring goal is but it’s certainly over more ground than her return assignment in the Group 1 $1m Winx Stakes (1400m).

In both preparations as a three-year-old Zardozi was outsprinted in shorter races early in her campaigns, before training on to win the VRC Oaks in the spring and run second in the Australian Oaks in the autumn, and that’s on the trainer’s mind but he’d like to see her show a little bit first-up.

“She’s been coming along beautifully, she’s been loving her work and I’ve been quite pleased with what I’ve seen from that mare as she strives to make the leap from her three-year-old season,’’ he said.

“She didn’t draw well fresh up last prep in the Surround. She’s got the better draw to suit a stayer first-up from a spell and I’d like to think it won’t be as messy.

“The prep before she had a bit of a bye first-up too so it’s a legitimate concern if you’re a died in the wool supporter of the mare that she takes a little bit of racing to get to her best but that’s all right.

“She can run a nice race there first-up and set herself up nicely for the rest of her campaign. It wouldn’t shock me if she ran a cheeky race.”

Commemorative runs second in a Warwick Farm trial on August 12

James Cummings on Silmarillion (race 6): “I think her first-up run was better than it looked, admittedly she tackles Manaal and a couple of very good horses here but at set weights and penalties at least she gets some relief. I like the way she’s come on from that first-up run and I’d expect her to run well this weekend.”

On Zeitung (race 6): “She’s just kept improving and she’s worthy of a little bit of interest in a race like this. It’s a big jump to be graduating from the midweeks at Canterbury but I think we will learn a little bit about her. I like the way she’s gone about her work since, she’s kept herself well contained.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday’s Randwick meeting