Godolphin trainer John O'Shea pushed Astern to get him to his "grand final" in the Golden Rose back in September, but he's had a better preparation for his second peak in the Coolmore Stud Stakes at Flemington on Saturday.

O'Shea and his jockey James McDonald speak of Astern with a tone reserved for special horses. They have been here before 12 months ago with a Golden Rose winner, but Exosphere went home licking his wounds. There is belief that will not happen again.

"This bloke is better than him," O'Shea said. "He is a different horse and I think he is the best I have trained.

"He does things that you don't think are a possibility.

"We really had to push to get him there for the Golden Rose. Being a Sydney horse, that was his grand final and this is the bonus you aim at after.

"But he gets there having done nearly everything right, other than win the Roman Consul Stakes, and he is going to go down the straight against some exceptional three-year-olds with some confidence."

Astern is a $3.50 second pick in betting for the Coolmore behind dual group 1 winner Extreme Choice, but the race has a handful of chances including Roman Consul winner the unbeaten Russian Revolution and Star Turn, which beat the older sprinters in the Schillaci Stakes at Caulfield.

McDonald gets excited talking about the son of Medaglia D'oro and a cheeky grin comes across his face when he says the colt gives him "goose bumps" and it is scary the improvement he has shown from two to three.

"He was brilliant as a two-year-old but he has developed mentally and physically since then," McDonald said. "You could feel how good he was as a baby but he was flighty but since he has come back he has turned into the man.

"He is the type of horse that makes me look good and think he can do that on Saturday."

The ultimate racing form guide with free tips, live odds and alerts for all racing.