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By Ray Hickson

Co-trainer Ciaron Maher would be more than happy to set his sights as high as Group 1 level in 2023 with emerging mare I Am Me if she can notch her first stakes win and make it four straight at Canterbury on Sunday.

Trainer Ciaron Maher (Pic: Steve Hart)

The four-year-old has been dominant in three Benchmark wins in Sydney over the past two months and the Listed $160,000 Kia Canterbury Sprint (1200m) is a logical step.

Maher is adamant there’s more to come from I Am Me, who has been a revelation in the first half of the season, and while he stops short of saying she’s been a surprise packet he sees no reason why she can’t reach a higher level with continued improvement.

“Depending on how she goes, if she won well, I’d be thinking about handicap Group 1s or certainly having them in our sights,’’ Maher said.

“It’s the right time to take on a stakes race, she drops to a lovely weight and she’s in career best form. The ease that she’s doing it this prep is a bit surprising I suppose.

“She’s in great order, she looks fantastic and I think she looks even better than she did the other day. We don’t do a lot with her because she’s racing fairly regularly.”

The Canterbury Sprint has had a few iterations but it has been won by some classy sprinters including Group 1 winners Music Magnate (2017) and Alizee (2018) in recent years.

I Am Me, $1.75 with TAB on Saturday, made it three from three this campaign when she clocked a stunning 1:07.77 in winning a Benchmark 88 at Randwick over 1200m on December 17.

It was a wind assisted time but Maher said she’s taken no harm from the run and is confident she’ll be able to offset a rare wide barrier when she jumps from the outside in a 10 horse field.

“James (McDonald) reckons if she was challenged the other day she had a bit more there,’’ he said.

“The times don’t lie, I rather her do that than not. Her form would reflect she’s a better horse, she’s furnished a bit.

“She’s got a high cruising speed. Whether it’s a stayer or sprinter if they’ve got that tactical speed it’s an advantage.”

Sunday will be I Am Me’s fourth attempt at a Listed race, her best result is a fourth in the Denise’s Joy at Scone back in May.

But Maher, who co-trains with David Eustace, believes she’s just taken a little longer to mature and strengthen than a lot of other fillies.

“Usually the easiest time to get black type is as a three-year-old but she wasn’t quite there. She’s come back a stronger, better, horse,’’ he said.

“She always showed ability but she used to do a bit wrong, get a bit keen early in her career.

“The owners have been patient, she is four and she hasn’t had a lot of racing.”

I Am Me wins at Randwick on December 17

Stablemates Semana and Glowing Gold step up to city grade on the back of impressive country wins in the Furphy Handicap (1550m) and Maher said both have earned their chance.

Semana made it two wins from three starts with a Goulburn victory on December 16 while Glowing Gold is chasing a hat-trick after wins at Bathurst and Canberra.

“Glowing Gold was running some average races, we changed his work around a little bit and he’s seemed to hit form. He was quite dominant last start,’’ Maher said.

“We just put Semana in the easiest race we could at her first start to try and build a bit of confidence and it’s certainly done that.”

All the fields, form and replays for Sunday's Canterbury meeting