Queensland Racing Limited (QRL) has no plans to reintroduce discretionary powers to elevate any horse into feature races, including the Group One Stradbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm.Queensland's two major race clubs held the controversial discretionary power ruling for many years to promote horses into Group races before it was abolished by QRL three years ago.Victorian filly Ortensia, who is the heavily-backed $6 second favourite for Saturday week's Stradbroke Handicap (1400m), put the spotlight

Queensland Racing Limited (QRL) has no plans to reintroduce discretionary powers to elevate any horse into feature races, including the Group One Stradbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm.

Queensland's two major race clubs held the controversial discretionary power ruling for many years to promote horses into Group races before it was abolished by QRL three years ago.

Victorian filly Ortensia, who is the heavily-backed $6 second favourite for Saturday week's Stradbroke Handicap (1400m), put the spotlight back on the old rule following her sensational victory against her own sex in the Listed Glenlogan Park Stud Stakes at Doomben 10 days ago.

The Testa Rossa filly is only 36th in order of entry for the Stradbroke and is in grave danger of missing the field of 20 runners plus four emergencies unless she wins the Group Two QTC Cup (1300m) at Eagle Farm on Saturday.

The QTC Cup winner is exempt from any Stradbroke ballot.

Some people believe Ortensia should be declared a Stradbroke runner because of her strong betting support but QRL disagrees.

"We don't have any discretionary powers to include any horse and don't plan on making any changes " QRL racing services manager Paul Brennan said.

Confusion arose following some media reports which stated QRL chief handicapper Lester Grimmett would use his discretionary powers to include Ortensia in the QTC Cup and Stradbroke Handicap.

"The only power the handicapper has is with weight and the rating each horse has," Brennan said.

"Once the weights are released, QRL has no discretionary power to include or exclude any horse.

"Discretionary powers were used a few years ago by our two clubs but they had different rules which was inconsistent for stakeholders.

"In this case, if Ortensia was entitled to be in the Stradbroke field then she would have been up higher in the weights.

"But she's done most of her racing against her own sex."

Ortensia, the winner of six of her nine races, should just scrape into the QTC Cup which is restricted to a field of 17 plus five emergencies.

Melbourne jockey Craig Williams is expected to decide on Wednesday whether he will ride All Silent or Ortensia in the Stradbroke.

All Silent's trainer Grahame Begg wants a decision from Williams before the weekend and has put Hugh Bowman on standby.

All Silent flashed home down the outside fence and wasn't seen on the television footage when third to Apache Cat in the Group One Doomben 10,000 (1350m) last Saturday.

"I won't be waiting until Saturday. What Ortensia is doing doesn't bother me," Begg said.

Begg said he had no criticism of Williams' ride on All Silent when he took the sprinter to the outside in the straight of the 10,000.

"He (Williams) had it made up in his mind before the race and I had no problems with it," Begg said.

"As it turned out by the time he got around the home turn he was three-quarters of the way out there."