Carabella inspires fear

Carabella's bad draw in tonight's $125,000 NZ Oaks has been tempered by a distinct lack of confidence from her rival trainers. The champion pacing filly will start from one on the second line in the classic, which would appear the only draw she could get beaten from after thrashing most of her rivals last Saturday.
But her rival trainers aren't just worried about Carabella, they are worried about their own form.
High-class fillies Maid In Splendour (barrier one) and Miss Elsie (three) get their chance, on paper at least, to threaten Carabella but their trainers say the fillies are not at their best.
"I thought my filly was terrible last week," said Maid In Splendour's trainer Steven Reid.
"She pulled way too hard so we have made a gear change but she also didn't race up to her best. So I am not confident we can beat a filly like Carabella."
Miss Elsie's trainer Colin De Filippi feels the same after his stable star was fifth in the Nevele R Final last Saturday.
"I am not sure if it was because we burned early but she didn't race up to her best," De Filippi said. "And it's hard when you race a filly like Carabella because she just keeps running."