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Reborn Con Karakatsanis three-year-old Howmuchdoyouloveme is Ramornie Handicap-bound following his second win from as many starts since a throat operation.
Photo by Racing and Sports
The untapped Sydney speedster was half a length too strong in the three-year-old open handicap at Eagle Farm on Saturday, prompting the Rosehill trainer to test him in listed company.
It was Howmuchdoyouloveme's third win from four starts and second salute following a harrowing seven months away from the track.
Karakatsanis discovered last spring his horse had a respiratory problem when he collapsed from heat stress after running second at Rosehill.
“After that run, we realised that he was a grade-four roarer,” Karakatsanis said.
“He got operated on and the operation was as good as you could hope for, you couldn't ask for anything more.
“I've had a very very big opinion of him from the word go.
“I still don't know how good he can be. He's got that little bit of an unknown factor about him - I think he's really good but how good is just going to be the question.”
Howmuchdoyouloveme was always prominent on Saturday but only just held on over the 1200m.
“I was confident but a little bit worried because I knew he was still fairly underdone,” Karakatsanis said.
“His first-up run was more or less his barrier trial and [jockey] Brenton [Avdulla] said he knocked up probably 250 out, but he just still had too much class for them.
“He's still very very green, he's still very raw, he's still got a lot to learn.
“At the moment he's wanting to burn the candle at both ends, he's still wanting to go a little bit hard.
“He'll go to the Ramornie at Grafton, and then probably just give him a nice little freshen-up and bring him back for the spring.”
Karakatsanis contested last year's listed Ramornie Handicap with two-time Stradbroke Handicap winner Black Piranha, but could only manage fifth behind Jerezana.
The stable star has struggled since then and more than two years have now elapsed since his last win, which came in the 2010 Stradbroke.
Black Piranha was being aimed at the race again this year but didn't make it after disappointing runs in the BTC Cup and Doomben 10,000.
“He's gone back to Melbourne, he had a slight sesamoid injury, and he got operated on last week,” Karakatsanis said.
“He's just going to have probably three months off. He should be right and he'll head back to Sydney.
“You'll probably see him right near the end [of the spring].”