In a ‘special edition’ of The Stir Up, GRV’s Gerard Guthrie and Peter Quilty – along with expert form analyst Dale Code – offer their ‘words of wisdom’ on the finals of the Group 1 Sportsbet Melbourne Cup and Group 1 Sportsbet Bold Trease and provide a ‘First 4’ for both events.

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Quilts: Alright, gents, it’s the penultimate night of the $4.1m Dream Chasers Festival highlighted by the sport’s ‘Holy Grail’ – the Melbourne Cup – and the Bold Trease which, as we all know, honours the immortal “Warrnambool Warrior”. So, let’s get down to tin tacks. What are your thoughts?

Dale: It’s hard to tip against Big Energy based on his last two wins considering he has posted 5.02sec and 4.97sec to the first peg. A repeat effort could have him leading again and it would be game over if he did. He is the only dog in the race to break 29 seconds.

Gerard: I can’t go past Big Energy either. He’s been absolutely enormous in his last two wins. The draw could be the fly in the ointment, but Dale’s spot on about his much improved first splits and if he does lead again it’ll be times and margins thank you very much! Personally, I’d love to see Kel Greenough holding the trophy he wants more than any other. Undoubtedly one of the very best people in the sport.

Quilts: Firstly, I just want to hark back to our ‘All In’ selections last week for the Melbourne Cup. I’m happy to ‘pump up our tyres’ considering we were all on Big Energy at $6. He’s now $1.85 favourite to take home a $650,000 winner’s cheque.
And I reckon he will! That 28.91sec display of sprinting excellence on a soggy track was mind-blowing. He’s in rarefied air and it’s worth noting he’s nine from 15 at Sandown.

Dale: Buddy Monelli looks the next best because the red box is where you want to be in big finals and his record off inside draws is great. Fabs Vegetable is the only run on dog in the race and at double figure odds he could be the smokey.

Gerard: Jason Thompson told me to watch out for Tim Zoo before he’d raced and while he’s shown glimpses, he certainly put it all together in his heat win. Jason made the point Tim Zoo probably had the worst of the conditions in race 11 last week and could have broken ‘29’ himself if he’d been in an earlier race. Tim Zoo went nearly five lengths quicker than the third fastest heat winner (Aussie Rocks) so he and Big Energy have a huge edge on the clock. I think one of the two wins.

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Quilts: Obviously, Tim Zoo looks capable of delivering a KO blow. His 29.07sec heat win was the right ‘combination’ to ‘floor’ Big Energy. But it remains to be seen whether he’s ‘punching above his weight’ against such a tough opponent – albeit Jason Thompson knows how to win Melbourne Cups. He’s chasing a fourth ‘Holy Grail’!

And the only ‘surprise packet’ I see is Make No Promise. He was runner-up in the G1 Maturity Classic and is eight from 12 at Sandown. His trainer, Paul Bartolo, quinellaed the 2006 Melbourne Cup with litter sisters Betty’s Angel and Miss Mini Mouse. So, what a story it would be if he took the race out 17 years down the track.

Quilts: Okay, fellas, now to the Bold Trease.

Dale: Mrs. Avenger is ridiculous value at $17. She ran just one length off the fastest heat time at her second staying start and if she begins like that again she could pinch a race-winning lead.

Gerard: Mark Delbridge won’t be defending the Melbourne Cup title with Yachi Bale, but I reckon his litter brother Zoha Bale can also celebrate a Group 1 win on Melbourne Cup night. He ran into traffic everywhere he went when runner-up in his heat before storming home but the horse – or in this case greyhound – had bolted. That was his only defeat to date in four 715m runs at Sandown and from box one I’m confident he can make amends.

Quilts: I reckon it’s a race in two between arguably two of the strongest stayers in Australia. Reigning Victorian Stayer of the Year Moraine Suzie – a finalist in last year’s Bold Trease – and Zoha Bale both have ‘kick like a mule’ finishes. I have a slight leaning towards Moraine Suzie taking the $105,000 first prize.

Quilts: Thanks fellas. Looking forward to your prognostications on The Phoenix in a fortnight’s time.

Our experts’ ‘All In’ market selections: