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By Ray Hickson

Champion jockey James McDonald will have to rely on tempo working in his favour when classy mare Joliestar meets a crack field in her major TAB Everest lead up at Randwick on Saturday.

Jockey James McDonald (Pic: Bradley Photos).

The mare was scratched from the Sheraco last week to start her spring in the Group 2 $1m Yarraman Park Shorts (1100m) where she’ll face TAB Everest runners Private Harry and Briasa among others in the 10 horse field.

McDonald has no doubt Joliestar will show she’s on target but said he has a high degree of respect for what she’s up against given her pattern will likely see her settle back from barrier nine.

“This looks a harder race to be fair but she’s a quality mare, a three time Group 1 winner, so she deserves her spot in this million dollar race,’’ McDonald said.

“High pressure suits her and it looks like a mini-Everest rehearsal for sure.

“It’s a high quality field and I’m sure she’ll run really well because she’s a good horse.”

Joliestar, $4.60 with TAB on Wednesday, has been locked into the Chris Waller Racing slot in the TAB Everest for the second year running, she ran sixth in 2024 and didn’t have too many favours.

The stable also has Lady Shenandoah secured for the $20m sprint next month so Joliestar is in some way auditioning for McDonald's services in the race.

McDonald, who won the Shorts last year on I Am Me and in 2022 on Nature Strip, has been pleased with the five-year-old’s two barrier trials and said there’s an air of confidence around her at present.

“She’s a beautiful mare, she’s working really sharp at the moment,’’ he said.

“Chris has been really happy with her and they’ve been excellent trials.

“A great advertisement of how well she’s going is Chris has put her in his stable slot which shows the confidence he’s got in this mare.

“She was very unlucky (in the Everest) last year and she is going better now.”

Fangirl is back in Sydney and out to defend her title in the $1 million 7 Stakes (1600m) having kicked off in the Memsie Stakes three weeks ago.

Eight of the super mare’s 11 career wins have come at Randwick and McDonald said that’s a huge plus given she showed first-up, while unplaced, she’s returned as well as ever.

“She wears her heart on her sleeve every time she puts a hoof on the racetrack and Saturday will be no exception, she’ll be primed up to win,’’ he said.

“She looked a little bit awkward going around Caulfield so she did a good job running fourth I thought. Back to her favourite track and favourite distance she’s the one to beat.”

While drawn better than the middle, Fangirl will likely be conceding a start in the 7 Stakes and if McDonald could change one thing about the seven-year-old it’s that lack of early speed.

“Unfortunately she is one dimensional, she always needs a bit of luck to go her way with race pattern and how it falls for her,’’ he said.

“She’s sometimes good enough to overcome those obstacles, it would make her life a lot easier if she had tactical speed.

“She’s got an incredible turn of foot, though, she’s showed that many times throughout her career.”

Joliestar runs third in a Randwick trial on September 2

McDonald was sweating on an inside barrier for Tupakara to have her chance to break through in the Group 2 $300,000 Myplates Tea Rose Stakes (1400m) and got his wish when the filly landed in barrier three.

A maiden after seven starts, Tupakara is already Group 1 placed from the Champagne and showed she’s not far off a win with a narrow defeat to Apocalyptic in the Furious Stakes (1200m) two weeks ago.

“She surprised me with her first-up run, I thought it would be a bit short of her best,’’ McDonald said.

“She was out of her ground but, boy, she was good late. I worked her on Tuesday morning and she worked really well with the blinkers on and she’s in this race up to her ears.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday’s Randwick meeting