Leading Sydney trainer Chris Waller holds the key to Saturday’s (7 March) G1 Canterbury Stakes (1300m) at Royal Randwick with three runners, including two of the top fancies.

While Joliestar, who will be ridden by James McDonald, and Lady Shenandoah are expected to top the market, Waller believes his promising three-year-old colt Beiwacht will be better suited to Saturday’s distance after two failed attempts down the famous Flemington straight.

Beiwacht, a Group 1 winner over 1400m at Rosehill last year, finished his last season in the G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes (1200m) with a four-length fourth and resumed his latest campaign in the G1 Lightning Stakes (1000m) when he finished last after leading.

“It just didn’t work out down the (Flemington) straight,” Waller said.

“He’s got a very high cruising speed, but probably not high enough to be racing against 1000-metre horses. I think it’s more a 12 to 1500-metre cruising speed, where he can sustain it. We’ve got to get him back into that type of racing and we thought the Canterbury Stakes was the best option.

“His win in the Golden Rose (G1, 1400m) in a similar type of race, his rating was through the roof – like, world-standard – so we’ve just got to try and simulate that and get back to that level.”

Joliestar scored an easy first-up win, while Lady Shenandoah finished third to her stablemate.

“They both ran well first-up, Joliestar was awesome and she’s come through it well,” he said. “The 1300m will suit her and Lady Shenandoah was brilliant first-up as well.”

John O’Shea and training partner Tom Charlton will also have three runners in the race – Linebacker, Yorkshire and highly-rated three-year-old colt Napoleonic.

“We’re not scared of taking on the older horses, and I won this race before with three-year-olds,” O’Shea said. “Holler won it when I was at Godolphin, and this is a better horse than Holler. He brings Tempted form from his first-up run, and she beat all the older Australian horses in The Everest (second to Ka Ying Rising).

“I think the three-year-olds have shown they are very good already, and he is a pretty good three-year-old.”

The Ciaron Maher-trained Gringotts is also among the fancies.

The Canterbury Stakes is carded as S3-2 and will be run at 2.15pm (Hong Kong time) on Saturday, 7 March in Sydney, Australia.