All uphill for our Cup hope
The Chosen One will be the only one of the 24 runners truly flying the flag
And then there was one. That is all that is left of the Kiwi challenge for tomorrow’s A$8 million Melbourne Cup after just The Chosen One made the final field for the race that stops two nations and forces a lot of racing people on the other side of the world to get out of bed early.
It it is not a bad name for our sole Melbourne Cup rep, the kind of name likely to lure in one-bet-a-year punters. It sounds almost religious.
But it is going to take a lot more than a catchy name to make the Waikato 4-year-old competitive at Flemington tomorrow.
Nothing went right for The Chosen One in the A$300,000 Lexus Handicap on Saturday when he got further back than expected and ran on well for fifth. There was nothing wrong with the run but it hardly inspired you to back him tomorrow.
But at least he is in the race for trainers Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman.
Fellow New Zealand stayer Sir Charles Road was an honest fourth in the win-and-you-are-in Lexus taken out by Downdraft so he missed a Cup start by a couple of spots.
Auckland Cup winner Glory Days pulled out last week with a minor injury.
So while there are horses like Surprise Baby representing the New Zealand breeding industry, The Chosen One will be the only one of the 24 runners truly flying the flag.
Forsman was willing to forgive Saturday’s run but not kidding himself about the mountain to climb tomorrow.
“We knew we were in trouble after 800m on Saturday, we were trying to get him to settle but there was no speed on,” he said. “So he made good ground but we realise how strong a field it is on Tuesday.
“But the blinkers come off and we have an experienced jockey in Tim Clark so we are happy to have him in the race.”
With The Chosen One rated 80-1 in Australia you could ask why his connections wouldn’t bother targeting one of the rich country cups as a consolation.
But most owners never get to have a Melbourne Cup starter and there is the not insignificant matter of even the horse who finishes 12th earning A$160,000, more than you get for winning most NZ group one races.
If he is able to relax and runs out the 3200m, The Chosen One can get one of those cheques but a top three placing would be a huge surprise, with his best campaigns probably still ahead of him.
And this is not the Melbourne Cup we all grew up on, full of good local stayers and the odd out-of-form Aussie horse who snuck in via an Oaks or Derby win the previous season.
The overseas form, while puzzling for many, is strong from topweight and defending champion Cross Counter, through Japanese-trained Caulfield Cup winner Mer De Glace to an army of O’Brien horses.
Champion Irish trainer Aidan O’Brien has three in the race but he has been usurped by his son Joseph, who incredibly has four.
After the draw Constantinople (barrier seven) and Mer De Glace (gate two) headed the markets but the reality is the great race looks a lottery to be decided by how well they handle the 3200m, who reproduces their overseas form and most importantly who gets the most economical and clearest run.
But if that is all way too complicated for you and you simply want to back the only Kiwi in the race, consider this.
The Chosen One has drawn barrier 18. That is the only barrier in the history of the Melbourne Cup no horse has ever won from.
Don’t feel the need to be parochial.