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By Ray Hickson

Trainer Joe Pride always thought when Australian Derby runner-up Ceolwulf was gelded it would be the making of him and prior to his first-up assignment at Rosehill on Saturday he’s a little excited about what might lay ahead.

Trainer Joe Pride (Pic: Bradley Photos)

What Pride has seen since the four-year-old returned to work has been a stronger and sharper racehorse and if those changes translate to race day he could end up anywhere this spring.

We’ll get a glimpse of the new Ceolwulf in the Precise Air Handicap (1400m) and Pride said he wouldn’t put it past the horse to surprise.

“It has changed him and at this stage, without having taken him to the races yet, in a positive way which is normally the case,’’ Pride said.

“It generally makes horses better, not too many race worse as geldings.

“He was a horse that lacked a bit of strength but I thought leaving him a colt for that three-year-old year was the right thing to do by him.

“He’s a stronger version of himself now and being a Tavistock out of a Shamardal mare you’d think he would only get better with age.

“This horse has hopefully come back a bit faster, he looks a bit faster, he was very grindy last preparation. I think he’s got a bit more sprint about him now.

“I’d be disappointed if he didn’t run well.”

Ceolwulf, $13 with TAB on Thursday, is a rarity from the Pride stable, by his own admission the trainer says it’s not usual for one of his horses to have had four Group 1 runs in their first nine starts.

That obviously says he has always been a talent, enough for Pride to throw him in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes following his second placings in the Rosehill Guineas and Australian Derby.

Pride said there’s no set target as yet, given he feels he could be effective from a mile to 2400m based on what he’s achieved to date, but it remains his lone win was in a maiden at start two.

“He’s entitled to be a better horse this time around but he needs to be one,’’ he said.

“I’m really open minded about him. I’ve seen too many horses come back from prep to prep and change what they are.”

The second of Ceolwulf’s two trials came just on Monday and Pride said to be beaten two lengths by Ducasse and Amelia’s Jewel in a sprint home was ideal.

“If you’re going to race a horse on trial week that’s the kind of trial they need to have,’’ he said.

“He had a little pipe opener, I thought he went very nice but it’s maybe a bit hard to get a line on it because they were going slowly and it was a dash home. But he dashed home with them.”

The Warwick Farm trainer is less sure what to expect from recent stable addition Astapor in the Listed $200,000 Sydney Markets Rosebud (1100m).

Formerly trained by Clinton Taylor, the colt has won three of his six starts including an all the way first-up win at Eagle Farm a month ago.

“He’s been here about three weeks but I’ve probably got not much more idea than you about how to line up his form,’’ he said.

“He’s a nice colt, he’s arrived in really good order and I guess he’s got a bit of a fitness advantage on some of his rivals.”

Ceolwulf's trial at Warwick Farm on August 12

Astapor took on boom colt Storm Boy just before Christmas, starting $5.50, and ran fourth though he was unable to find the lead in that race and perhaps had come to the end of his preparation.

Pride suspects the Rosebud is a good measuring stick for where he might stand.

“He’s been pretty good, on his last win at Eagle Farm I wouldn’t think he’s too far off these horses,’’ he said.

“If he gets beaten by them I wouldn’t think it’d be by that much.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday's Rosehill meeting