KEY POINTS:
Natalie Rasmussen says she couldn't be more confident of defending the Interdominion title with Blacks A Fake - and bookmakers believe her.
The bull-like black Queensland pacer's defence looked to have hit a snag when he drew the second line for Saturday night's A$500,000 ($565,000) pacing final, but
the more his trainer-driver analyses the draw the more she likes it.
Under South Australia's unusual starting rules, Blacks A Fake can try line-up on the second line between the horses drawn one and two on the front line, Robin Hood and Winforu. If he is then strong enough and fast enough he could push on to the back of Winforu, who is an almost certain leader.
That could see Blacks A Fake handy on the outer after just a few hundred metres.
That scenario has been widely accepted by bookmakers throughout Australasia, with Blacks A Fake around $2.20 with most of them.
That is ridiculously short considering he got out to $2.30 before winning last year's final in Hobart in a race in which he was a certain leader in a weaker field.
Even if Rasmussen is right about Saturday night's race Blacks A Fake, the strongest horse in the series, is likely to be behind the other three favourites - Be Good Johnny, Winforu and Robin Hood - after 300m.
But that prospect wasn't denting her confidence yesterday.
"Of course I would have liked a front row draw but the more I look at this the more I like it," Rasmussen said. "I am sure I am in a better position to follow Winforu forward and settle in front of most of the field.
"I certainly won't be wasting any time before putting him into the race because this is a track where you simply have to be up there and that is how he races best anyway.
"I am every bit as confident of winning this year as I was last. I think he'll win, he'll either be too fast or too tough for them."
While the draw for the final was a major win for Winforu, one of the greatest beneficiaries was champion horseman Tony Herlihy.
With Foreal drawing barrier four, she was always going to be regular reinsman Anthony Butt's selection to drive, meaning Herlihy has got the call to partner stablemate Tribute.
Herlihy has spent most of this week on holiday and was expecting to be driving a large team at the Te Aroha picnic meeting on Sunday.
Instead he will be chasing the one major harness race to elude him, with the bonus of having picked up the drive on What Ever You Like in the A$200,000 Trotting final.
Herlihy partnered Tribute to a luckless sixth in last month's Victoria Cup and is happy to have another crack at the pacing final, which he went closest to winning with Christopher Vance at Alexandra Park in 1991.
While he has drawn the second line, Tribute is in career-best form and Herlihy was impressed by what he felt in the Victoria Cup.
"It was a race he couldn't win a long way from home the way it panned out, but he really found the line well," said Herlihy. "It is a good field for Saturday night but it is always great to be part of a race like this and I'll be hoping for a hot pace."
Herlihy will be returning to the scene of one of his greatest career wins, his come-from-last stunner on Pride Of Petite in the 1997 Interdominion Trotting Final.
* The latest market for the Interdominion pacing and trotting finals on Saturday night are. -
Pacing: $2.25 Blacks A Fake; $5 Robin Hood, Be Good Johnny; $5.50 Winforu; $12 Foreal; $21 Tribute;$26 Smooth Crusa, Reba Rajah; $41 Toe Taper; $51 Karloo Mick (em); $101 Franco Heir.
Trotting: $1.60 A Touch Of Flair; $5.50 Glenbogle; $6 Whatsundermykilt; $16 Flying Hardwick; $21 Viva La Fever, Jauriol; $26 Motu Miss Anna; $31 Tamra Dawn; $41 Uncle Petrika; $61 Bonito; $101 What Ever You Like; $126 Backa Beyond (em), Code Of Honour.