Why J-Mac’s post-race comments surprised Grafterburners’ trainer

Grafterburners took out the $3 million Sunlight 3YO Plate (1100m) by 1.55 lengths at Gold Coast on Saturday, defeating Nashville Jack and Sylph who finished second and third, respectively.

Superstar jockey James McDonald was aboard the Kelly Schweida-trained colt and made all the ride moves to get the job done.

When speaking to Schweida after the race, J-Mac admitted that the bay is a talent – something which surprised the trainer.

“He's rated the best in the world for a reason, so (we had) him on,” Schweida told RSN’s Correct Weight.

“(J-Mac) gave him (Grafterburners) a good rap actually.

“He said he’s a talent (and) probably better off one pair back because he really let go and then floated when he got to the front, being a real colt.

“It surprised me, (J-Mac) giving him a good rap after the race.”

Heading into the sprint, the trainer admitted that he expected the colt to win the big prize money race, however struggled to understand the form lines of the sprint.

“You expected (a victory), that's what you hoped,” Schweida exclaimed.

“But it was really hard to get a line on the form, to be honest - there was a bunch of horses with Melbourne form.

“I like to do a bit of form, and I found that race really hard to get a line on, but I think the bookmakers sort of had it right.”

When speaking about Grafterburners’ future plans, the trainer revealed that the colt will have a break now before racing in either the million-dollar Inglis Sprint (1200m) at Flemington on February 28 or the $500,000 3YO QTIS Jewel (1200m) at Gold Coast on March 7.

“He'll have a freshen up (now),” Schweida said.

“There's two races (he could run in) - he's eligible for that million-dollar English race (Inglis Sprint) at Flemington (and) there is a half a million-dollar dual race here at the Gold Coast, so that would be a good option for him.

“He'll only have the one run probably, but they're good prize money races and will hopefully get him ready for carnival.”

Grafterburners won the two-year-old version of the 3YO QTIS Jewel last year.