January 26 - Renowned racehorse trainer, Leon Corstens, is looking forward to Saturday's AUD$500,000 Lightning Stakes (Gr 1) at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Australia, because he is confident that his three-year-old charge, Starspangledbanner, is in prime shape to win the 1000m sprint.

In fact, Corstens is hoping that come Saturday Starspangledbanner will emulate his sire Choisir, who won the Lightning Stakes seven years ago as a three-year-old. Betting fans will no doubt back Starspangledbanner to win, considering how he romped home first in last year's Caulfield Guineas (Gr 1).

As an open handicap, the last time a three-year-old won the Lightning Stakes was in 2005 so Corstens is hoping to change that this weekend with a dazzling run. Said the trainer, 'I'm very impressed with him. He has matured quite a lot, bulked up, and seems to be working very nicely at the moment.'

Last Wednesday Corstens put the colt through his paces at Geelong Racecourse in the form of an exhibition gallop, in which he delivered a performance that has the trainer convinced he'll pull off a win on Saturday with Danny Nikolic aboard. 'I'd be disappointed if he doesn't run a big race,' he said.

However, Starspangledbanner will face some stiff competition in the form of Cannonball, who is expected to be the first ever horse trained in the United States to compete in Australia, as well as Nicconi, Irish Lights, Headway and Duporth, all of whom are previous Gr 1 winners and formidable runners.

Corstens also has other runners entered in the Flemington card on Saturday, including the largely untested Tricky Tricky, a handsome colt that has been heavily touted ahead of February's Blue Diamond Stakes. On Monday Tricky Tricky won an 800m barrier trial at Cranbourne by eight lengths.

Said Corstens, 'He sat in front in the trial and once they straightened he was clicked up and he spaced them. I was very pleased with him. I still think he has got a bit to learn and he maybe was a bit flattered in his trial but he did seem to trial impressively. He's a nice type of colt who will improve as he goes.'