The battle for three-year-old middle distance supremacy continues this afternoon in the G1 Rosehill Guineas run over 2000m at Rosehill.

Regarded as the penultimate Australian Derby lead up, the Tulloch Stakes next Saturday the last of the recognised lead up races, the Rosehill Guineas has been the domain of top class three-year-olds producing subsequent group one winners such as Metal Bender, Eremein, Diatribe, Sky Heights, Tie The Knot, Octagonal, Naturalism and Surfers Paradise.

This afternoon the field is not big but certainly has quality with G1 Randwick Guineas winner It’s A Dundeel, G1 Victoria Derby winner Fiveandahalfstar, G2 Alister Clark Stakes winner Hvasstan, G1 New Zealand Guineas winner Sacred Falls and Geelong Derby Trial winner Solemn all engaged.

Timeform’s top rated runner for the race is the kiwi galloper It’s A Dundeel who has returned to racing in exceptional form impressively winning the G1 Randwick Guineas over 1600m at Warwick Farm last start.

That was his second run this time in. It came on top of an eye-catching fresh up effort in the Hobartville Stakes at Rosehill over 1400m where he came from near last on the turn for fourth to Pierro.

However it was his Randwick Guineas win where he ran to a new Timeform peak of 123p that sent a clear message to his rivals about who was the horse to beat in the three-year-old features this autumn.

Wearing blinkers for the first time, It’s A Dundeel raced handier in the run than normal, settling mid field early before pouncing out wide in the home straight tackling Proisir and then running away from him close to the line.

The kiwi galloper trained by Murray Baker has only raced once in his homeland but remains under the care of Baker’s son Bjorn at Warwick Farm while racing in Australia.

A winner of six of his nine race starts, It’s A Dundeel was impressive last spring winning the G3 Gloaming Stakes (1800m) at Randwick on his way to an upset win in the G1 Champion Stakes at Randwick a fortnight later where he defeated the short–priced favourite Proisir.

Although he failed to win in Melbourne running second in the Vase at Moonee Valley before failing behind Fiveandahalfstar in the Victoria Derby (2500m) when at the end of a long campaign, he was not disappointing, training off after some tough Sydney races.

Should It’s A Dundeel be successful today he will be on his way to an historic treble of wins including the Randwick Guineas, Rosehill Guineas and Australian Derby.

Since the Randwick Guineas replaced the Canterbury Guineas over the shorter 1600m distance in 2006, no horse has been able to take all three, Metal Bender in 2009 coming closest winning the first two legs before finishing eighth in the Derby behind Roman Emperor.

Randwick specialist Shoot Out in 2010 won the first and last leg, finishing fourth in the Rosehill Guineas.

The blinkers stay on It’s A Dundeel today and I am looking to him to run to a new Timeform rating and prove the horse to beat.

The clear danger is Victoria Derby winner Fiveandahalfstar who has resumed this campaign in impressive form, taking his winning Derby Timeform rating from 118 to 122 with his second to Super Cool in the G1 Australian Cup two starts back.

Fiveandahalfstar has raced four times this preparation for a many seconds. Three back he was runner up to Super Cool in the G2 Autumn Classic (1800m) before a head second in the G1 Australian Cup (2000m) again behind Super Cool then last Saturday was caught and run down late in the G1 Ranvet Stakes behind older galloper Foreteller.

The record of three-year-olds coming through the Australian Cup to the Rosehill Guineas is not great, Sale Of Century in 2001 the only one to win a Rosehill Guineas after running in the Australian Cup.

Saintly won the 1996 Australian Cup was beaten in the Rosehill Guineas while Crawl (2000) and Elvstroem (2004) were beaten in both races.

Fiveandahalfstar is the natural speed in the race which should ensure a solid run affair, something that will also help It’s A Dundeel.

New Zealand Guineas winner Sacred Falls will be having his third start for the Chris Waller stable after being shipped across the Tasman for an Australian campaign.

Previously undefeated in six kiwi runs before joining Waller, Sacred Falls Timeform rated 116, is taking time to find his best form.

The son of O’Reilly was heavily backed fresh up in the Royal Sovereign Stakes at Rosehill but failed to finish the race off finishing fifth.

Last start he improved sharply on that running to a Timeform of 112 with more to come with a solid finish in the Randwick Guineas behind It’s A Dundeel.

Sacred Falls is yet to be proven past 1600m but the way he finished off last time out, I have little doubt he will be troubled by any increase in distance.

Melbourne visitor Hvasstan will add some interest to the race. He comes off an impressive last start win in the G2 Alister Clark Stakes (2040m) at Moonee Valley rating to 114 with the promise of further improvement to come.

From a historical perspective the Alister Clark Stakes has not been a reliable guide to the Rosehill Guineas, Naturalism in 1992 the only horse in the last 25 years to complete the double with the Rosehill Guineas while Diatribe in 2000 was runner up in the Alister Clark before winning at Rosehill.

Hvasstan raced with distinction last spring winning the G3 Norman Robinson Stakes over 2000m at Caulfield en-route to a game fourth behind Fiveandahalfstar in the Victoria Derby.

The Peter Gelagotis-trained galloper has raced three times since a spell showing improvement each time. Two back he came from well back for an eye-catching fourth in the G1 Australian Guineas over 1600m at Flemington behind Ferlax then of course building on that with his last start victory.

Hvasstan is unbeaten at his only two runs at 2000m and looks set to race well again.

Enjoy an intriguing clash.