“She has been going good races and was travelling well in the Waikato Cup last start until I let her head go and she just couldn’t handle the wet track.
“But Sunday looks her chance to roll forward from a handy draw, stay handy with a light weight and she will be hard to catch.”
Self Obsession looks each-way value at $5 with the $4 favourite for the Cup being Dionysus, who also won a major race at Ellerslie on New Year’s Day last year.
The Cup has depth as does the $300,000 Railway in which McNab pilots Dragon Leap from what he believes will be an advantageous barrier one.
“I think the draw is perfect. He will probably sit three pairs back on the inside and charge late but there are some good horses in there and I think the winner will be the one who has the most go right for it.”
McNab has picked up a surprise chance to defend the Royal Stakes title with Polygon, the last-start winner of Eulogy Stakes at Te Rapa being asked to go 400m further this time.
“She is a great ride to get out of nowhere but I’d prefer if she had drawn in a bit,” he says of a race in which Skew Wiff deserves favouritism after stretching Legarto just a few days ago.
He also has winning hopes with progressive juvenile Balance Of Power (R2, No 2) while Keenasabean is well up in grade in the Auckland Guineas but he rates him as a three-year-old to follow.
His strong book extends through Nest Egg (R4, No 12) and Purrfect Puss (R6, No 13) and he warns punters Tevere (R9, No 12) could be the smoky in the mile, which looks the most even race of the day. “She has been running on well,” he says.
