By MIKE DILLON
Paul O'Sullivan made a statement late last year that he doesn't feel pressure going into a major race.
He is not stepping back from that line, but you get the impression today's Falkirk-Pay My Bail clash at Te Rapa has got his total attention.
This is a biggie - the beautifully bred and unbeaten Falkirk is being groomed as a potential stallion for Windsor Park Stud.
On a stallion's scoresheet every racetrack victory is a champagne party and every loss is cancer.
There are two major differences between Falkirk and Pay My Bail.
Falkirk has had just three raceday starts and had he gone through the salering he might have made something like $500,000.
The tiny Pay My Bail has been to the races 15 times and Trevor McKee paid just $2000 for her.
If O'Sullivan has lost sleep this week - and he's not admitting to it - it's over the fact that Pay My Bail's superior ringcraft at this stage is a huge hurdle for the handsome Falkirk to clear.
The stallion thing is what O'Sullivan admits to thinking about most.
He sums it up beautifully: "The job would be easier if he was a gelding.
"Geldings maximise their winning and earning potential eventually and who cares if they get beaten on a certain day - there's always next week.
"It's different when you're thinking about a stallion."
Falkirk has a big reputation, but don't underestimate the height of the mountain he faces today.
He has run in a maiden race and two 3-year-old races of only fair strength.
On the other hand, Pay My Bail was a close second to Vinaka in the country's premier sprint, the Railway Stakes at Ellerslie and has a number of other attempts against the best around.
"The obvious progression for him would be this race without Pay My Bail in it," says O'Sullivan.
"Instead of him taking one step, he is having to take three.
"I've always said that one day this horse will be competitive with the very best horses and, regardless of the result this time, I'll stick to my belief that that is accurate.
"The biggest thing tomorrow is that he has to do things professionally.
"Pay My Bail is a fantastic filly and she does not lie down."
O'Sullivan knows that because he won the Railway on January 1 with Vinaka.
Pestering the champion sprinter right to the line and only a long neck away was Pay My Bail.
"If he takes a sideways step at any stage she will put three lengths on him."
O'Sullivan looked at Falkirk at his Matamata stable yesterday afternoon and said: "No, there is no real pressure - you look forward to these sorts of races."
So does the rest of horse racing.
SPEED DUEL
The combatants couldn't be more different. Falkirk is being groomed as a potential stallion.
Pay My Bail is a streetwise, tiny grey tornado.
* He has raced just three times and is unbeaten.
* She has been to the races 15 times.
* If he had gone through the salering he could have brought about $500,000.
* Trevor McKee paid $2000 for Pay My Bail.
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