CUP OF KNOWLEDGE TRAINER’S HOPE FOR GREAT RACE
RACING’S new boy on the block, Adrian Bott, is hoping his recent training partnership with Sydney-based Gai Waterhouse can provide him with at least one Melbourne Cup runner in his first season as a trainer.
Excess Knowledge, which ran a gallant seventh in last year’s Cup, and three-yearold Lord Macau, both race at Caulfield today and hold nominations for the Cup.
Lord Macau is on the path to the Victoria Derby but is the lightest weighted Mel- bourne Cup hope with 49kg.
Bott is the 28-year-old son of businessman and owner/ breeder Tony Bott of the Evergreen Stud Farm at Newcastle and was always destined to have some role in racing which has now led him to a training partnership with one of Australia’s highest profile trainers.
He grew up in the Hunter Valley in Scone at the original Segenhoe Stud and worked with horses doing yearling preparations and attending sales before becoming a cadet steward with Racing New South Wales.
Bott, whose father has al- ways raced horses with Waterhouse, won a scholarship with the Darley Flying Start (now Godolphin Flying Start) which is a two-year program based at Sheikh Mohammed’s international studs in England, Ireland, America, Dubai and Australia.
For the past four years he has worked with Waterhouse before graduating to assistant trainer, to training partner, and is excited about the prospects of today’s Cup.
After a solid first-up run in the Dato’Tan Chin Nam Stakes at Moonee Valley two weeks ago, Bott said Excess Knowledge would be better suited to today’s 2000m of the Group 3 Naturalism Stakes (MRC Foundation Cup).
“Obviously the aim for him again this year is the Melbourne Cup, so it is a nice stepping stone,” Bott said.
“He has come on well and looks fantastic and I think he’ll run a very strong race at Caulfield. It’s early days but he is doing everything right and touch wood, seems right on track.”
Bott said the seven-yearold, which will be ridden by Mark Zahra, had been given a light autumn campaign in favour of having a big spring.
Lord Macau races in today’s National Jockeys Club Plate (1600m), with Dwayne Dunn in the saddle, and finished third at his first race as both a three-year-old and racing the Melbourne way of going at Moonee Valley earlier this month. He will race with blinkers today.
While being aimed for the Derby, Bott said Lord Macau would have to achieve a lot in coming races to make the Melbourne Cup.
“At this stage he is progressing toward the derby and if he was to win a race like that, we then have the option of looking at the Melbourne Cup.”