Danzero gelding Stoneblack will have the 15th start of his two-year-old season at Sandown on Wednesday and trainer Robert Smerdon is expecting him to go on from his breakthrough win in a Ballarat maiden earlier this month.A dual stakes placegetter at Flemington and placed in town on six occasions, Stoneblack has had the most starts of any two-year-old prepared by Smerdon throughout his career.Only NSW two-year-old Lucky Elmo has had more starts, 20, this season.But those numbers pale into insign

Danzero gelding Stoneblack will have the 15th start of his two-year-old season at Sandown on Wednesday and trainer Robert Smerdon is expecting him to go on from his breakthrough win in a Ballarat maiden earlier this month.

A dual stakes placegetter at Flemington and placed in town on six occasions, Stoneblack has had the most starts of any two-year-old prepared by Smerdon throughout his career.

Only NSW two-year-old Lucky Elmo has had more starts, 20, this season.

But those numbers pale into insignificance compared with UK galloper Provideo who won an incredible 16 races from 24 starts as a two-year-old in 1984 and later stood at stud in Victoria siring Group One Show Day Cup winner Black Rouge, Group Two Sandown Guineas winner Star Video and five other stakeswinners.

Provideo shares the all-time record with The Bard who chalked up his 16th juvenile victory in 1885.

The legendary US galloper Sea Biscuit had 35 starts as a two-year-old, winning five of them, before becoming a champion as an older horse.

"He's been luckless a couple of times. He should have won three runs ago at Flemington but got caught wide out on a limb," Smerdon said of Stoneblack who is a half-brother to multiple stakeswinning stablemate Marveen who was runner-up in both the Group Two Queensland Guineas and Sandown Guineas this season.

"It was good that he broke his duck last time. He's a good competitor and if he wanted a break we'd give him one, but he's just thrived on racing so we've continued on with him just for that reason.

Smerdon will also be represented by topweight Norwegian, to be ridden by apprentice Brenton Avdulla in the Chortle Hcp (1600m), but a win by Stoneblack at the last metropolitan meeting of the season would help Nick Hall in his quest to win the Melbourne apprentices' premiership.

Hall, locked on 32 wins with Dean Holland who is under suspension and won't ride on Wednesday, is one win clear of Ibrahim Gundogdu.

Hall has just two rides, the other being last-start Seymour winner Aspen Heights in the Betfair Hcp (1600m) for trainer Tony Noonan.

Gundogdu has a ride in each of the eight races including three for the powerful David Hayes stable which has nine runners in seven races.

Hayes, fighting out the trainers' premiership with Lee Freedman with 64 wins apiece, has the numbers in his favour as Freedman has only two runners at Sandown.

The jockeys' title has also gone down to the wire with Craig Williams and Damien Oliver locked together on 70 wins.

Williams has a ride in every race on the program, while Oliver has six mounts.

Oliver's rides include one for Freedman, Zacroona in the Gothic Hcp (1400m), and two for Darren Weir, while four of Williams rides are for Hayes, three for Mick Kent and one for his father Allan.