“Forgotten horse” Briasa is ready to come back with a bang

By Connor Scanlon

Have you forgotten about Briasa? The talk surrounding the Michael, John & Wayne Hawkes-trained grey has definitely quietened down in recent times, but that doesn’t mean the gelding isn’t sneakily improving his craft.

Co-trainer Michael Hawkes has spruiked the sprinter for the spring, exclaiming the six-year-old is bigger, stronger and better.

In fact, Hawkes even stated that after a disappointing autumn, the son of Smart Missile could become the talk of the town, much like how star sprinter Jimmysstar has done.

“Oh mate, we're just flying under that radar. He’s all good; he's well,” Hawkes told SENTrack & RSN’s Giddy Up.

“He’s come back bigger, stronger, better! He’s more relaxed, he's more mature.

“He's a forgotten horse, a bit like Jimmysstar I suppose, where last prep he didn't win a race and all of a sudden everyone's talking again.

“Look, he just had no luck (in the autumn), and for the runs that he had, if he won a Group 1 or 2 last prep, everyone would be talking about him.

“He's on song, put it that way… He'll step out very shortly in the trials.”

In last year’s edition of The Everest, Briasa ran eighth, but will he secure a slot in 2026 for the world’s richest race on turf?

The co-trainer admitted that he would be happy either way if the six-year-old does secure a slot or not, given they can run Briasa in the $2 million Sydney Stakes if an Everest slot doesn’t come to fruition.

“If it happens, it happens,” said Hawkes.

“I think the best thing at the moment is, other than Ka Ying Rising, not one horse has got a slot.

“And how far out are we from the race? Last year, there was only about three or four slots left in this time.

“So that just goes to show what the calibre of horse is out there.

“And they might be running scared from Ka Ying, and there's nothing wrong with that.

“But I've heard Wayne (Hawkes) say it before - Ka Ying Rising has to get here, he has to travel, and everything has to go right.

“So I think it's very even at the moment, and everyone's sitting back waiting to see what happens; who wins, who goes where.

“But our bloke, if he doesn’t get in, there's another little $2 million race on the same day called the Sydney Stakes.

“That's not a bad little race to win either just quietly.”

And when looking at the end of the prep for Briasa, Hawkes revealed their current plan is to run the grey in Melbourne for the first time, down the Flemington straight for the Group 1 Champions Sprint (1200m).

“That's the plan at this stage, hopefully we can get down there,” admitted Hawkes.

“He's never travelled before this horse, and it's always something we've wanted to do.

“Honestly, with the prize money in Sydney, this horse has never had to been out of Sydney.

“Whereas this time, it probably falls right, I think he'll run up the straight. He hasn't been up there, but until you try, you don't know.”

For The Everest, Briasa currently holds a roughies price of $51 with Sportsbet, while he is $11 for the Champions Sprint.