A quartet of stayers will put their final G1 Melbourne Cup hopes on the line on Wednesday.
Patrick Erin (NZ) (Gallant Guru), Dal Harraild (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}), Lord Fandango (GER) (Lord Of England {GER}) and Sir Charles Road (Myboycharlie {IRE}) need to win the G3 Jayco Bendigo Cup and hopefully earn a penalty to move up the order of entry for the Flemington feature.
Chris Waller elected to bypass Saturday’s G2 Moonee Valley Gold Cup with Patrick Erin, believing this was the better option for the 7-year-old.
A typically rugged and durable New Zealand-bred distance performer, he won the G3 The Metropolitan at his latest outing and Corey Brown again takes the reins.
Dual Listed winner
Two of Dal Harraild’s six wins in England were at Listed level and he has a placing to his credit in the G3 Lonsdale 2., prior to relocating from William Haggas’ Newmarket yard to Ciaron Maher and David Eustace.
His finished eighth in the G2 Herbert Power S., behind the Melbourne Cup favourite Yucatan (IRE) (Galileo {IRE}) in his Australian debut for the Caulfield trainers and it’s fair to assume he will strip a fitter horse for that outing.
Dal Harraild
There doesn’t appear to be much between him and Lord Fandango, who was sixth in the Herbert Power, with no change in the handicap from their first meeting.
Sir Charles Road was a sound fourth in the Naturalism S., in his first spring outing in Melbourne, but an elevated temperature then forced trainers Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott to ease up on last season’s G2 Chairman’s H., winner.
Coongy disappointment
He tailed the field home in the G3 Coongy H., on his return, but should be all the better for the outing. A placing in the G1 Sydney Cup in the autumn is testament to his staying ability.
The Bendigo Cup favourite is the Darren Weir-trained Furrion (GB) (Camelot {GB}), who has won six of his eight starts and was a last-start third in the Listed Cranbourne Cup.
Fourth in that race was Runaway (Manhattan Rain), who has since come out and won the G3 Geelong Cup.
Sir Isaac Newton (GB) (Galileo {IRE}) was a solid last-start third behind his stablemate The Taj Mahal (IRE) (Galileo {IRE}) in the G3 JRA Cup at Moonee Valley and a return to a bigger track is expected to be in the 6-year-old’s favour.
