KEY POINTS:
Anthony Butt isn't the only one pleasantly surprised about heading into the $200,000 Fremantle Cup with Flashing Red - New Zealand harness racing fans should be too.
Last Friday's amazing Auckland Trotting Cup winner is now in Perth where he meets a surprisingly moderate field off a 20m handicap.
The race will be run at 1am tomorrow (NZ time), which would usually mean Kiwi punters had no chance of betting on, much less seeing, it.
But the TAB will extend Trackside hours so the race can be shown, as well as taking bets. That will give local punters a chance to see Flashing Red attempt a unique double.
It's almost certain no horse has won group one races in Auckland and then in Perth less than a week later.
Flashing Red's chances have been given a great boost by the lack of inter-state raiders. Most of his opponents are West Australian pacers, few with genuinely daunting formlines.
Some of them have 10m handicaps, meaning Flashing Red will meet them better off than he would in a New Zealand or Hunter Cup.
While he still has to navigate his way around a big field on the tight Gloucester Park track, driver Butt was surprised by the lack of depth.
"It won't be an easy race to win because they run hard all the way in Perth and he could even end up stuck three wide," said Butt.
"But at least he won't be giving some of the top eastern state horses a big start. They are mainly local horses and half of them only get a 10m start so it will help."
Butt and Flashing Red travelled to Melbourne on Tuesday and the 9-year-old worked well on Wednesday.
He then flew to Perth yesterday.
"It is not ideal flying in the day before the race but he has handled it all really well and I couldn't be happier," said Butt.
Flashing Red's greatest danger could be his former stablemate Sir Galvinator, who will start off the front line, while the former Tony Herlihy-trained Maheer Lord is another familiar to New Zealand punters.
