A very competitive line up takes their place for the 2014 G1 Toorak Handicap headed for the first time by an international galloper Guest of Honour having his first Australian run.
In what looks to be a below par renewal, Guest Of Honour as top weight on 58kgs does not look out of place, however fitness and other queries must play against him this afternoon, although it is worth remembering that another import Trevieres did run a gallant second to Solzhenitsyn in last year’s renewal on his Australian debut run.
Trust In A Gust has carried all before him this preparation winning three of his four runs culminating with a new career peak Timeform rating effort when a last stride victor over classy Dissident in the Rupert Clarke.
Trust In A Gust’s rating profile suggest there is still more to come , which there will need to be to offset the 4.5kgs rise in weight he has to overcome today.Getting to 1600m is no bar to Trust In A Gust and with five time winning rider Brad Rawiller jumping back atop, he rates as the horse to beat.
Guest Of Honour prepared by Marco Botti is the unknown but he is the class 1600m horse in this race.The lightly raced five-year-old has raced just 14 times for five wins, three of which were over the 1600m of today’s race.
Guest Of Honour has raced twice since a spell for two wins, the last coming in the G2 Summer Mile at Ascot where he narrowly defeated Mull of Killough running to a Timeform rating of 120.A repeat of that figure today makes one of the hardest for Trust In A Gust to beat.
Speedy mare Solicit is ready to peak after two runs back from a spell.Last year’s VRC Oaks placegetter looked close to peak form last start in the G2 Stock Stakes over 1600m at Moonee Valley being cut down late by Dear Demi and running to her master rating.
With the likelihood of no designated leader, I can see Solicit taking up that role and proving hard to run down.
