A scarcity of suitable races in his home state has led trainer Darryl Hewitt of Murray Bridge to look towards Caulfield for two of his horses.
The consistent performer Sir Now is set for the Group 3 Sir John Monash Stakes (1100m) on Saturday, while Snoopy Now is scheduled to carry the top weight in the Sportsbet Same Race Multi Handicap (1700m).
Hewitt indicated that looking interstate was a necessity, especially with Sir Now, who has been carrying hefty weights in races in his home state.
Sir Now, a winner of nine of his 24 races, with eight further placings and over $400,000 in prize money, had been assigned up to 65kg in recent starts before the claim of apprentice jockey Alysha Warren.
“He can’t race here because there’s no races for him,” Hewitt stated.
“He’s running around 65 kilos on his back, but he’s been pretty honest all the way through.”
“Ideally you would stay in your own backyard as he’s been pretty competitive, but he deserves a chance over there.”
“The track is going to be a soft five or six come Saturday, but he can handle heavy going, if it goes that way, and he comes down four-and-a-half or five kilos on his last run.”
Sir Now has attracted punter support, firming from $15 to $6.50 in early wagering.
Hewitt is not new to Victorian racing, having been based out of Benalla around two decades ago with a couple of horses – Merlot Now and Sparkling Now – who were similar in type to the two horses competing at Caulfield this Saturday.
Merlot Now had outgrown the Adelaide racing scene due to his rating, a situation Hewitt mentioned is occurring once more with Sir Now.
This will be Sir Now’s second appearance in Melbourne, having previously finished fifth at Flemington over 1000m on VRC Oaks Day.
“They came home pretty quick that day and we went over thinking it was going to be a wet track and it ended up being a Good 3, and he finished not far behind Rey Magnerio.”
“He won’t disgrace himself over there on Saturday.”
Senior jockey Connor Murtagh will replace Warren on Saturday.
Stablemate Snoopy Now comes into the race following a last-start win in a benchmark 78 race and will be ridden by the in-form apprentice Jackson Radley.
Hewitt expressed concerns about Snoopy Now facing Melbourne opposition given the weight the horse is tasked to carry.
“It’s like the SANFL over here, against the AFL over there, and we’re getting rated the same,” Hewitt commented.
“He’s taking an 85 rating over there against other 85 rated horses that are racing against better quality week in, week out.”
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