Lou Mary will trek from Scone to Moree on Sunday when starting $4.60 favourite Royal Charge in the $55,000 Moree Cup (1400m).
The in-form Royal Charge will be searching for a third-straight Country Cup success after the six-year-old won the Bengalla Cup (1280m) at Muswellbrook on July 30 before backing up and winning the Hopkins Livermore Cup (1400m) at Taree on August 18.
“At his last two starts, he has been showing what he is capable of,” Mary said.
“He is in a very good frame of mind at the minute.”
A six-time winner, Royal Charge is putting together an outstanding record, and Mary suggested he had worked out how to race the son of Charge Forward.
“It all depends on where he draws and where he ends up in the run,” Mary said.
“He doesn’t like being overly crowded and needs room; when he gets some space, he runs with confidence.
“He’s not a horse that is going to take a gap, and if he is on the inside, he doesn’t want to go past them; he is an old, quirky horse, but the ability is there.”
With Jake Pracey-Holmes in the saddle, Royal Charge is expected to go back from gate 11 and look for running room.
“At his last two runs, he’s found the outside easily, and barrier 11 at Moree is perfect,” Mary said.
“He can sit one off the fence, even three off with cover, and he’ll be able to get into his comfort zone.
“If Jake can get him there, he’ll let him do his thing, chase the leaders, and hopefully run them down late.”
With the $100,000 Dubbo Cup on September 10 and the $75,000 Coonamble Cup on October 8 qualifiers for the $3 million Big Dance, Mary is considering his options with Royal Charge.
“We’ll see how he pulls up, but he has been racing well, and he is a fit sort of horse,” Mary said.
“If he wins at Moree, I might even back him up at Dubbo, but we’ll see how things go. Still, there are no big plans.
“Plus, with the Big Dance, those cups are a lot stronger because of the city trainers, and there will be a lot more pressure, and I’m not sure if he is up to that level just yet.”
It’s just Mary’s second trip to Moree, and he will take two to the meeting, with Pick’ N’ Stick (Jake Pracey-Holmes) set to jump from gate three in the $50,000 Country Super Maiden (950m).
A $16 chance with bookmakers, Mary admitted it would be tough but that he was happy with the three-year-old debutant ahead of Sunday’s race after she finished third in a 1000m trial at Muswellbrook on August 17.
“I’ve only had her this preparation; she was a bit underdone, and we’ve only had the one trial as it is hard to find morning trials around here,” Mary said.
“She surprised me a bit, and I wasn’t expecting that much; she showed plenty of gate speed and was a bit soft late.
“Jake was taken by the trial, and we think she can run a nice first-up race.”
It will be a big day of racing at Moree on Sunday, and for more on their race day and Saturday night’s Charity Dinner, click here.
For fields, click here.
