Trainer has reservations before feature but top sprinter proves too powerful.
The field walked through the birdcage for the $200,000 Waikato Draught Sprint and Stephen McKee said: "I'm not sure we can beat that filly."
John Sargent, one hour subsequent from scoring what he described as the best win of his career with Red Ruler, didn't disagree with his colleague.
Five
minutes later the filly they were looking at, We Can Say It Now, was lengths behind the McKee-trained Mufhasa, who dominated as only he can in major races.
Stephen McKee was as in awe of Mufhasa as he's ever been and you have to remember he had won the Telegraph at his previous start.
McKee knew his chance lay in tactics. "I honestly thought that filly, who looked like a beast in the parade, might be tough to topple at the weights, but I said to Sam [Spratt]: 'Coup Align will lead you to the home turn, don't be in any hurry to tackle him'."
The tactics won the race, along with Mufhasa's toughness. At this level, experience, toughness and pure fitness are all that matters.
"It takes a good horse to win five group one races," said McKee.
The $200,000 Otaki Classic beckons, but so does Australia, something McKee is a touch shy about.
"As good as he is, he has never really either had luck or been able to fire in Australia."
You would have to believe that is only a matter of time.
"There are a few options, but David [managing owner David Archer] is keen on the Futurity Stakes in Melbourne. It used to be 1400m, but I'm pretty sure it's 1600m now."
In typical fashion, Sam Spratt downplayed her role in the win.
"They're easy to ride when they're as good as him."
Not quite.
Sam Spratt suits Mufhasa and Mufhasa suits Sam Spratt.
"To be honest, I thought we had the race won a fair way out. You don't like saying that, but he was travelling so well on the home bend."
If Australia beckons Mufhasa, Wall Street is another who is heading back to the patch where he won the Emirates Stakes on the final day of the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
"That was a terrific effort," said rider Michael Coleman after Wall Street finished second.
"The pace was against him the whole way, I had to dig him up a couple of times, but he really finished off well.
"His style has been to improve greatly between his first and second runs in his campaigns and he'll do that this time."
Mufhasa and Wall Street are likely to head to Otaki before Australia.
Keep The Peace finished strongly into third ahead of pacemaker Coup Align and We Can Say It Now.
Coup Align is heading to Te Akau's trainer Mark Walker in Singapore and will run in the Krisflyer Sprint there in May.
The 1400m simply proved too far for Coup Align in such a pressure race.
After leading, he was still travelling well on the home bend, but by the 150m the 1:21.09 1400m time had got the better of him.
Over 1000m and 1200m in Singapore is will be a different story.
Co-trainer Bjorn Baker was initially disappointed with We Can Say It Now finishing fifth, but yesterday had modified his view.
"She will have taken a huge amount of improvement out of that race," he said last night.
Rider Leith Innes agrees.
"When you are coming back from a break, that's a huge pressure race.
"She was the first to pull up, but she'll be better for it."
It made no difference to the result - Mufhasa would have won regardless - but Innes felt having to wait behind Mufhasa in the one-out line didn't do We Can Say It Now too many favours.
"I had Bulginbaah outside me and I didn't want to use her to push him out of the way.
"I had to wait on Mufhasa to sprint, but I knew that when he did he'd sprint too quickly for us."
Baker was okay with everything.
"She's fine and she'll progress towards the Australian Guineas."
It was difficult to tell whether trainer John Sargent or rider Mark Du Plessis was more excited about Red Ruler winning his long-awaited first group one victory in the $200,000 Darci Brahma International.
Yes, it had been a while coming.
Du Plessis was appreciative of Red Ruler's owners keeping him on the horse after criticism of the former South African's ride when beaten into second in the Zabeel Classic at Ellerslie on Boxing Day.
Sargent was just thankful to have won a race at the elite level for his owners, which include his brother, New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing chairman Guy.
Zabeel Classic winner Booming this time finished second.
The difference was that in Saturday's race Red Ruler was making his run late in the race, against getting to the front early at Ellerslie and having Booming run him down.
"I have to be very thankful the owners have kept me on this horse," said Du Plessis.
"He has given me a lot of thrills, among them being he gave me another ride in the Melbourne Cup."
John Sargent narrowly missed providing the quinella result when Passchendaele just missed topping Booming off for second. "She went huge," said rider Vinny Colgan.
