Crunch time is approaching for the eight Everest slot-holders who have still to lock-in their starters for the $20 million The Everest, Racing NSW’s showpiece, which is now only five and a half weeks away.
And while those slot-holders will be weighing up their options, the connections of the main contenders still vying for a starting ticket will be pumping up the claims of their horse, outwardly unashamedly going into salesman mode while inwardly sharpening their negotiation skills to try and get the best of both world’s … a runner in The Everest and a satisfactory financial arrangement with the slot-holder.
As the old saying states ‘you have to in it to win it’ but, even with those eight slots … two-thirds of the field … still to be filled, a very high bar has already been set with Giga Kick, last year’s Everest winner, being snapped up by James Herron Bloodstock, I Wish I Win already there courtesy of the Trackside Media slot, with Think About It (the Newgate and GPI Racing slot) and Mazu (the Star and Arrowfield slot) also confirmed runners.
It would be hard to argue against the view that this year’s Everest winner is already in the line-up.
Giga Kick, stands at the top of that tree. The Clayton Douglas trained star will provide up to date data on his present well-being when he contests The McEwen at Moonee Valley on Saturday. This will be Giga Kick’s first run since taking out the Doomben 10 000 back on May 23.
The McEwen run is designed to provide Giga Kick with a launch pad for a progressive path into The Everest and it will be the kind of test he needs with the likes of the thirteen-time winner Imperatriz, who already has a Group 1 win at the track on her resume, the very speedy Zoustyle and the ever-competitive Rothfire, amongst others, all likely to be ready to put in a good work shift.
The Peter Moody and I Wish I Win already has his one and only Everest preparation tun under his belt … that being a notable effort when finishing third in last Saturday’s Memsie Stakes, just half-a-length behind the brilliant Mr Brightside in a very pressurized finish.
Waiting in the wings is the Joe Pride trained think About It who currently boasts an unbeaten sequence of seven straight wins … the last of those being his superb win in the Stradbroke Handicap.
Not only does he have super credentials on paper, but he had his trainer Joe Pride in awe of his ability and his possible future reach form-wise after that emphatic Stradbroke win. Pride, who has trained many a good horse, is not prone to exaggeration, so his exalted opinion must be respected.
Mazu, for his part, has had two trials since finishing third to Giga Kick in the Doomben 10,000. With his place in The Everest assured, there is no pressure on him in that regard, and he will be brought along on cue by the Peter and Paul Snowden training partnership … and the record books show that few stables know more about what it takes to win an Everest than Team Snowden.
And so, we wait for the next shuffle of the cards to see which other horses will be thrown inti The Everest mix.
This is always an intriguing time.
A big couple of weeks lie ahead.
