Jessica Hopkins eyes Lakeside Cup prize

By Jordan Gerrans

Jessica Hopkins caused mayhem when she travelled north to The Q earlier this year and she returns chasing the ultimate success in the Lakeside Cup series later this month.

The youthful conditioner tasted Group 1 glory in the Gold Bullion Final in early February with star chaser Canya Mayhem over 520 metres.

With the upcoming Lakeside Cup to be contested over 457 metres on the Q1 surface, Canya Mayhem will not headline Hopkins’ team this time around, with the trainer opting to head north with kennelmate Canya Ultimate instead.

Heats of the rich Lakeside Cup will be run next Thursday ahead of the decider early next month, with $150,000 on offer in the event.

Ultimate does not boast the sparkling résumé of her kennelmate, but she did qualify for the Group 2 Bendigo Cup Final late last year, which was run over 425 metres.

Hopkins, who trains out of Junction Village in Victoria, thinks the 457 metres of the Lakeside Cup is the black bitch’s sweet spot for racing.

“She has run some very good times in trials at Bendigo,” Hopkins said of Canya Ultimate.

“She had a little setback last week that we are working on, but we are hopeful we will get a trial into her up there before the heats.

“She’s flying. You just don’t get races with that kind of money over 457 metres, the distance is probably a pet distance for her.

“We’ve got nothing down here at the moment for her.

“She’s only had two 500 metre races in her life and went good, but 450 metres is a pet distance.

“I know there’s good dogs up there, but I’ve got to give her a crack because it’d be the last crack she’ll have at it.”

The daughter of Opal Rocks has only missed a top-three finish once in her last six efforts, which came at Warragul earlier this month.

“She’s good enough to have a crack,” the trainer said about the Lakeside Cup.

“She’s pretty similar to Mayhem in a way that they’re pretty calm.

“There’s nothing over 450 metres worth this in terms of money. We looked at coming up last year for the race, but it didn’t work out in the end.

“Where it is in the calendar is fine because if you really wanted, you could take your Melbourne Cup dogs up there.

“It’s early enough - it’s a month before Melbourne Cup, so they’re fine. It’s not going to flatten them or anything.

“With a new race coming up, it has actually gone into a perfect spot in the calendar because it’s very rare.

“You can get the best of everything over 457 metres, your sprinters stepping up and your 500 metre dogs stepping back. You can get the best dogs from anywhere really, if people are happy to travel up there.

“I have had my eye on this race all year.”

The Lakeside Cup is a recent addition to the calendar, with two editions held so far. Barefoot Elsa and Blue Blend are among the recent winners.

On the Mayhem front, the star dog was a little sore following his run in the Million Dollar Chase decider on Friday evening at Wentworth Park. 

But, the top Melbourne trainer is optimistic the defending champion of the Gold Bullion will be back in the Sunshine State soon enough.

“We had a good time up there in January and February and it was quite easy,” she said.

“The club accommodated the trials, the trials were really easy, any questions about it all, they answered. It was actually very simple.

“We will look to follow a similar pattern with Ultimate as we did earlier this year, flying home between the heats and the Final if we are to make it.

“With Mayhem, we will look at races like the Topgun, Melbourne Cup and The Phoenix with him.

“Then, hopefully, we’ll come back up for the Gold Bullion. He’ll hopefully contest the same races as last year.

“It sounds simple, but you’ve got to get a start in those races and get a slot in The Phoenix again.”

Hopkins prepares a small team of five chasers while also working in the gallops world.

She is the racing manager for Melbourne trainer Enver Jusufovic, who has several runners nominated for Saturday’s Flemington meeting, which will host the Cox Plate this year.