Despite boasting the strongest resume of Friday night’s Sportsbet Warragul Cup finalists, star sprinter Slick Splits finds himself distant from favouritism.
His heat performance last week was solid without being spectacular, marking his first race since a modest showing in the $1.65 million Phoenix.
“His preparation was relatively light going into last week,” said part-owner Jason Lyne.
“He had a bit of a break after the Phoenix and just stayed home working in the runs.”
While the lead-up may not have been intense, it still produced some extraordinary trial times.
“In his first trial back he broke the 390m track record at Ballarat running 21.50, then he went 24.50 post-to-post at The Meadows.”
Slick Split’s Warragul heat win was tradesman-like. He began fairly, made good use of a suitable draw and proved far too strong late. With that first run under his belt, natural improvement this week feels likely.
“He hadn’t seen Warragul before and everyone tells me it can be tricky first up, but he drew well and handled the turn well enough. I would’ve loved to draw wide again, or even swap boxes with Off The Chart.”
Instead, Slick Splits will jump from box 4 in the final, sandwiched between favourites Dramatical and Off The Chart.
“It’s a cracking field with plenty of speed, but with a touch of luck and the benefit of last week’s run, who knows what could happen.”
Beyond Friday night the focus will quickly shift to the Sportsbet Australian Cup Carnival at The Meadows, which begins Saturday week with the Group 1 Temlee the main event.
“It’ll be a nice hit-out for the Temlee if he gets selected. His record at The Meadows is sublime, so hopefully he earns another crack at a Group 1 there.”
The Temlee field and box draw, along with the Group 1 Zoom Top, will be published on Monday.
The Sportsbet Warragul Cup Final is Race 9 and is scheduled to jump at 9.50pm.
