John O’Shea is confident Lost And Running will take his place in The Everest on Saturday, but labelled a skin irritation to the inside of the off-hind fetlock joint “less than ideal” after reporting the issue to Racing NSW stewards on Friday.
Lost And Running had been well-supported with bookmakers around the country into $6.50 second favourite on Friday morning, which drifted to $7.50 by the afternoon as the news of the complaint was reported on the Racing NSW website.
Lost And Running will be inspected by Racing NSW vets on Saturday morning to assess his fitness to run in The Everest.
Credit:Edwina Pickles
It looks likely Nature Strip will start an odds-on favourite to take his second consecutive Everest.
“I think [Lost and Running] will be right to run, but you have to tell them [the stewards] about everything, and they will have a look at him tomorrow morning,” O’Shea said. “You want everything to go right and this is less than ideal, but we just have to manage it.”
Lost And Running will front Racing NSW vets before being inspected by Dr Peter Curl, who will decide if he is fit to run. If Lost And Running has to be scratched, slot holder TAB will pick from one of the four emergencies.
Nature Strip is set to be the shortest-priced favourite in the six-year history of The Everest and could start as short as $1.60 if Lost And Running is scratched.
Bluebet boss Michael Sullivan was ready to let punters on Nature Strip, but said his exuberance is likely to be tempted.
“I would love to bet $2 about Nature Strip tomorrow, but it comes down to what the punters want to do and they are showing they want to stay with him now,” Sullivan said. “They didn’t need another reason to back him.
“I think the better the track gets, the better it is for Nature Strip. I thought the chances to beat him were Masked Crusader and Lost And Running and maybe the three-year-old Jacquinot, and we are getting a little bit of money for them.”
Randwick track manager Michael Wood lifted the track rating to a soft-7 after perfect conditions on Friday.
“We were forecasted that we would get eight millilitres of rain in the morning, and got next to nothing,” Wood said. “We got the best day we have had for the week on Everest eve.
“The sun came out and we had westerly wind, which is a warm wind and will dry the track even more.”
With the track drying, the chances of Masked Crusader and Jacquinot are improving and they could become second pick in betting by jump time at 4.15pm.
“Masked Crusader has been going great, but we need an improving track for him to get his best chance,” co-trainer Michael Hawkes said. “We have had one target and he is peaking for one day.”
Meanwhile, Widden Stud’s Antony Thompson clinched a deal to buy the Golden Rose winner Jacquinot on Friday for $10 million, with kickers for wins in The Everest or selected group 1 races possibly taking the deal to $15m.
“We stand Golden Rose winners Zoustar and Trapeze Artist at our farm and we think Jacquinot’s win in the Golden Rose was one of the best we have seen and took the opportunity to be part of his future,” Thompson said.
“His owners have stayed in him, but we look forward to racing him in the colours Sheikh Fahad’s Qatar Racing after The Everest.”
