GLACE HALF FULL FOR JAPANESE ACE
GETTING back on Caulfield Cup winner Mer De Glace for work at Werribee has put Damian Lane’s mind at ease ahead of the Melbourne Cup.
Lane is aiming to become the first jockey to claim the Caulfield Cup, Cox Plate and Melbourne Cup in the same year, having won the first two legs.
If he wins the Cup, Lane – who won this year’s Golden Slipper on Kiamichi – will join an elite group to have won the “grand slam” of Australian racing.
If Mer De Glace wins, it gives the Japanese a clean sweep of Melbourne’s big three races after Lys Gracieux won the Cox Plate.
Mer De Glace steps up 800m from his Caulfield Cup (2400m) win on October 19. Lane sees that as the only negative ahead of Tuesday’s $8 million Melbourne Cup.
Lane partnered Mer De Glace for the first time since his Caulfield win at Werribee yesterday.
“He was out there for a stretch of the legs and seemed in pretty good order,” Lane said.
“If anything he was a little bit brighter than when I worked him at Caulfield before he won the Caulfield
Cup. That was the main thing we were looking for today.”
During a two-month stint in Japan, Lane partnered Mer De Glace to two Group 3 wins.
That persuaded him the five-year-old was a worthy Caulfield Cup contender.
“I was confident before the Caulfield Cup as that was around his distance range,” Lane said.
“What we have to take in this time is it’s the first time he’s raced as close as twoand-a-half weeks, as most of his runs have been two months apart.
“That’s another question mark, but from what I’ve seen this morning, he’s pretty fit and well.”
Lane said Japanese horses were athletes, and Mer De Glace was a typical case.
“He keeps stepping up to the mark and he keeps winning,” Lane said. “He turns up and does his job. He’s a good, genuine, fast horse.”
Lane said to be a part of the Melbourne Cup was a thrill and to win would raise the bar to a higher level.
“It’s been a great carnival and I’ve been lucky to get on some quality Japanese gallopers and I know I’m on the right horse,” Lane said.