Gerry Kleeven will have his heart in his mouth at Cranbourne today as his star sprinter Luca Neveelk looks to continue his dominant country cup form.
A winner of 24 races from just 30 starts, Luca Neveelk will contest one of six heats of the Group 2 Kingston Trophies Cranbourne Cup at 4:47pm, however his trainer doubts that he is suited to Cranbourne’s strong 520m circuit.
“I’m not convinced he’s a genuine 500 metre dog,” Kleeven said.
“I’m confident he’ll lead, but he won’t want to make any mistakes because the competition will be hot. It’s a very good field.”
Luca Neveelk is rated a $2.90 favourite ahead of the in-form Alex’s Entity ($3.30), Kicking Rocks ($4.80), Ride The Rails ($6.00) and Hostile ($8.00).
One thing in the favourite’s favour is that he has been to the track before, albeit in a trial.
“I trialled him over the 520m at Cranbourne a couple of weeks ago, which was the first time I’ve ever trialled him at a track before he’s raced there, so hopefully it pays off.”
“He ran 30.25sec, which someone told me was a very good run considering the track conditions that day,” Kleeven said.
Tonight’s six Cranbourne Cup heat winners and two fastest second placegetters will contest the $65,000 Group 2 Kingston Trophies Cranbourne Cup final on Wednesday 7 January.
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Cranbourne Cup Heat Formguide: Click Here
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Cranbourne Cup Heat Odds: Click Here
