Group One winner Black Piranha will use Friday's rich Scone meeting as a launching pad towards a defence of his Stradbroke Handicap crown.Trainer Con Karakatsanis confirmed the gelding would line up in the Scone Quality Hcp (1100m) before continuing on to Queensland where the Doomben 10,000 and Stradbroke Handicap await.The gelding was one of the star's of last year's winter carnival in Brisbane finishing second to Apache Cat in the Doomben 10,000 before scoring an overdue Group One success in t

Group One winner Black Piranha will use Friday's rich Scone meeting as a launching pad towards a defence of his Stradbroke Handicap crown.

Trainer Con Karakatsanis confirmed the gelding would line up in the Scone Quality Hcp (1100m) before continuing on to Queensland where the Doomben 10,000 and Stradbroke Handicap await.

The gelding was one of the star's of last year's winter carnival in Brisbane finishing second to Apache Cat in the Doomben 10,000 before scoring an overdue Group One success in the Stradbroke.

While his lead-up form has not been as strong this time around, Karakatsanis believes the six-year-old is going as well as ever.

"I think he's going better but the quality of horses going around at the moment is probably stronger than last year," Karakatsanis said.

"The horse looks sensational, he's strengthened up a treat.

"He's just been racing without luck and doing a few things wrong but if I can get him right he will be competitive in whatever he runs in."

Black Piranha has contested Group One company at his past two starts finishing ninth to Danleigh in the George Ryder Stakes and 12th to Rangirangdoo in the Doncaster on April 17.

Jim Cassidy will make the trip to Scone on Friday to continue his partnership with the six-year-old, who cannot be given more than 61kg top weight under the quality conditions of the sprint.

Karakatsanis is hoping the race will prove an ideal pipe opener to Black Piranha's Brisbane campaign and he has made a key gear change to boot.

"I've taken the blinkers off him to get him to race like he usually does, to drop the bit and for his last 600 metres to be his best," he said.

"We put blinkers on him after the Cox Plate last spring to spark him up for the Emirates and he went quite well in them.

"But this time in they've done too good a job and they've fired him up so they're coming off."

Stablemate News Alert is also Brisbane bound after posting a strong victory in the Wagga Town Plate last Thursday.

News Alert won two of his three starts in Queensland last winter collecting the Listed Chief De Beers and Group Three WJ Healy Stakes.

Karakatsanis has not locked in a program at this stage but the Doomben 10,000 (1350m) on May 29 is among his options.

"I haven't sat down and thought about where he will go but he's nominated for the 10,000 or he could run in the Chief De Beers which he won last year."

While Karakatsanis will stop over in Scone on his way to Brisbane, he has his sights on another country carnival on the way home.

Both Black Piranha and News Alert are under consideration for the Ramornie Handicap at Grafton, provided they come through their Queensland campaigns in good order.