He’s No Slouch is no ‘stumblebum’. In fact, he’s the antithesis to his racing moniker.

And that’s why his Langwarrin breeder-owner-trainer, Peter Craig, considers He’s No Slouch (Box 6) “certainly a chance” in the $74,335 Group 2 Sportsbet Horsham Cup final (485m) – Race 8, 9.26pm – on Friday night.

“He’s got enough early pace; he’s certainly no duffer,” Craig said. “His top speed is really good and he’s strong late.”

Craig also says He’s No Slouch’s ‘green’ draw has worked out well.

“He’s a great chaser and has more ability than any other dog
I’ve trained.”

“I think the ‘pink’ (Matt’s Hope – Box 8) will lead comfortably and that may give us a reasonably clear run to the first turn. He and Baby Jaycee in the ‘blue’ (Box 4) will get to the rails, and that may set it up for a late finisher.

“I don’t think there’s much between most of them, but if Baby Jaycee gets to the front, she’ll be hard to run down. But Horsham is a track for big-striding dogs like He’s No Slouch.”

A highly underrated and extremely versatile type, He’s No Slouch (Feb ’20 My Bro Fabio x Fair Of Face) has registered 15 wins, 12 seconds and eight thirds from 52 starts. He’s amassed $127,285 in stakes plus $18,000 in coursing prizemoney, largely courtesy of his victory in last year’s Waterloo Cup – the ‘Holy Grail’ of coursing.

So, what makes him so adaptable?

“He’s a great chaser and has more ability than any other dog I’ve trained,” said Craig, who is president of the National Coursing Association of Victoria.

He’s No Slouch is rated a $14 outsider on Sportsbet, a quote that has Craig a trifle bemused.

“I won’t bother with a bet, it’s a $47,000 winner’s purse. He was $21 in early markets, but I did encourage a mate to have a ‘nibble’ at those odds on Tuesday.

“He’s always been overlooked. Last year, he won the Sale Sprint Championship ($20.20), a Bendigo Cup heat ($15.10) and the Cup Night Sprint ($13.20) at Sandown – all at double-figure odds.”

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He’s No Slouch – owned by the Amstel syndicate comprising Craig and his close friends Leigh Jennings and Nathan Tracy – won his Horsham Cup heat in 27.09sec.

It was the slowest of the four heat winners – behind Jungle Panther (26.83sec), Panadero Warrior (26.95sec) and Baby Jaycee (27.05sec) – but that hasn’t deterred Craig.

“In his only other run over 485 metres at Horsham, he got held up a little bit but chased home Jungle Panther, which had a beautiful run, to finish second (beaten 1.7L).

“It (Horsham Cup final) is a very tough race, but he’s right in the mix based on his run-home time from the heats.”

He’s No Slouch is a litter brother of megastar Wow She’s Fast  – and the “living in the shadow” axiom is mentioned ad nauseam, according to Craig.

Ironically, they met in last year’s G1 Maturity Classic won by ‘super sibling’ Wow She’s Fast and He’s No Slouch finishing eighth.

It’s also well documented that Craig sold three female pups from the litter, including Wow She’s Fast, for $8500 in total. He retained two males and two females.

“Yes, we sold three of the ‘girls’,” Craig said. “But Wow She’s Fast has been a wonderful advertisement for the litter, and I can’t begrudge selling a pup that ends up great.

“It’s been a fantastic ride, which I hope continues. ‘Mum’ (Fair Of Face) was artificially inseminated with a My Bro Fabio breeding straw around three weeks ago, so it’s a repeat mating. She missed to him last year.”

WATCH: HE’S NO SLOUCH (B1) “maintained the momentum” with a 27.09sec Horsham Cup heat win last week.