Price marvels at Diamond contender Guest House’s fortitude

Trainer Mick Price is keeping the faith in Guest House after he endured a torrid run when beaten at Caulfield last weekend, prompting bookmakers to ease him out in betting markets for the Blue Diamond Stakes.

A son of Home Affairs, Guest House is $7 equal second elect in the Group 1 two-year-old race behind stablemate Big Sky ($4). 

Guest House finished second behind Closer To Free in a colts and geldings Prelude as a short-priced favourite but Price said the youngster lost nothing from a Blue Diamond perspective.

“He was good, wasn’t he? Watching the race, he fumbled the start, crossed his legs, he messed it up, and he’s a horse that should be going forward in his races,” Price said at the Inglis Classic sale. 

“He took charge of Jamie (Melham) and he was pulling hard and deep with no cover the entire (way), 

“I thought, ‘those horses rarely run well, this thing’s going to run seventh’, so for him to climb back and run second and show some real guts, I thought it was a really good effort. He’s pulled up well, so he’ll take his place.”

Melham will maintain the ride on Guest House while her husband Ben will jump ship and ride the fillies’ Prelude winner Streisand instead of Big Sky, the winner of his two starts over 1000 metres. Jordan Childs rides Big Sky in the Blue Diamond.

Price added to his exposure to Coolmore’s Home Affairs, the leading first-season sire, with the purchase of a colt by the stallion out of Galileo mare Anjeo for $280,000.

Seven Lots earlier, the Melbourne trainer also went to $360,000 for a colt by Extreme Choice out of Altair’s Glow, who was sold by Newgate Farm and Gooree Stud as part of their joint venture.

“These Extreme Choices – I know there’s some in Melbourne Premier, and if you get a really hot market they’re going to have a $1 million or $2 million in front of them – so I think for what I paid for a beautiful, strong, chestnut livery colt, that was fantastic,” he said. 

“Obviously, I trained his father, and what an amazing stallion he is. He’s got the best strike rate of getting horses in Group races.”