Arhat and Munro look set to dominate
The "Best Bet" should come in race 8
Give or take a week or so, it was right about this time last year that ARHAT won a similar sort of race.
It was a 2,000m event on the turf. Michael Rodd was on the reins and, in his customary style, Arhat went at a steady clip before being jolted out of his slumber deep in the final stretch.
He opened up in style, winning by almost a length. The punters liked him so much that they backed him down to $11. He delivered, so no quarrels there.
That was the second leg of a race-to-race double for the son of Iffraaj.
In the 12 months since, Arhat - prepared by Michael Clements - has been back to the 2,000m just once, finishing fifth and two lengths adrift of Bahana.
He had five more runs over varying distances before winning again just two months ago.
"HIGH-CLASS" RACE
Now, he finds himself in a "high-class" race - a Open Benchmark 97 affair.
There's Blue Swede (rated 94) and Perfect P (93) and Order Of The Sun (88).
As for Arhat, he's at 71 which means he gets into the fray with a postage stamp on his back.
His jockey, Alan Munro, might have to sweat a tad to make the 50kg but it could be worth it because the race - which is run over two sweeping turns - will show off Munro's astute skills in staying contests.
So, if you watch the races the old-fashioned way, keep those binoculars peeled on the No. 5 horse, because he should be the one coming over all of them in that run to the post.
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