By Adam Hamilton
The Kiwi flavour really ramps up at Menangle on Saturday night.
Millionaire pacer Merlin, who races at Its Merlin in Australia, launches his quest to win the Miracle Mile in the Ultra Air free-for-all over 2300m (12.18am).
Crucially, the Barry Purdon and Scott Phelan-trained star has drawn perfectly in gate one, with Inter Dominion winner Don Hugo drawn next door in barrier two.
Purdon and Phelan stable their horses with the Fitzpatrick clan and Gavin Fitzpatrick will take the reins on Its Merlin this week.
Its Merlin hasn’t raced his second to Republican Party in the Auckland Cup on New Year’s Eve. The winner has subsequently franked the form with close-up and terrific third to Swayzee and Leap To Fame in the Hunter Cup.
Don’t Stop Dreaming has come out of finishing seventh in the Auckland Cup to run second to Leap To Fame in the Cranbourne Cup and brilliantly win the Terang Cup last Saturday night.
Its Merlin should have enough gate speed to hold his rivals at the start, making him clearly the horse to beat on Saturday night.
The five-year-old will then back-up a week later in what will be two star-studded Miracle Mile qualifiers at Menangle.
Its Merlin had three runs in a Menangle campaign this time last year for a second in the Paleface Adios Sprint, fifth in the Chariots Of Fire and then a strong win in the Light Horse FFA, which is essentially a Miracle Mile consolation.
Star Kiwi trotter Oscar Bonavena also opens his Sydney campaign on Saturday night in a 1609m free-for-all.
The Mark and Nathan Purdon-trained veteran will start from an outside draw (gate nine), but looks classes above his rivals.
Oscar Bonavena ran below his best in the Great Southern Star final, but bounced back superbly for a breathtaking Bruce Skeggs Trotters’ Cup win at Cranbourne last Saturday week.
His major Sydney aim is the $100,000 Group 1 Hammerhead Trotters’ Mile on March 8.
He’ll be driven by Greg Sugars just months after Oscar Bonavena defeated his now retired superstar Just Believe in the Group 1 New Zealand Trotting Free For All at Addington.
“It’s strange how things work out, but I’m thrilled to get the drive,” Sugars says.
The Kiwi flavour extends to the last of the Chariots Of Fire qualifiers where We Walk By Faith has drawn well in gate two, where he needs a top four finish to make the Chariots field itself.
Already the Barry Purdon and Scott Phelan-trained Better Knuckle Up is in the Chariots, just doing enough when fourth in last Saturday night’s Hondo Grattan.
We Walk By Faith finished just behind Better Knuckle Up in fifth spot last week.
Top Victorian trainer Emma Stewart, who already has Miki To Success, Bay Of Biscay and War Dan Buddy in the Chariots, has another three runners – Kingman (gate one), Stormryder (five) and Some American (six) – through the Hondo Grattan.
Kingman looks the one to beat this week and nothing went right in the Hondo Grattan and he now gets Luke McCarthy back aboard.
