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BIG horse though he is, St Leger winner COMMANDING CHIEF will be taken out of his comfort zone tomorrow when he faces Wayne DaCosta's American-bred CASSANOVA BOY and friends in the eighth race at 1500 metres.
Awesome in victory when making his open allowance debut on August 13, COMMANDING CHIEF skipped past HOMBRE as if the former Superstakes winner was standing at the top of the lane, posting 1:55.0 for 1820 metres.
However, nobody will be waiting around on their bridles tomorrow at 1820 metres and COMMANDING CHIEF will face real open allowance pace for the first time with 57.0 kilos.
It will be pace and more pace from the word go with the likes of TECHNOMOTO, having worked 1:06.0 for five and a half last Thursday morning, plus speedy DOUBLE THE HONEY and a supporting cast of middle-distance sprinters such as MACHISMO, CLASSIC BEAU and BELOW THE WAIST.
To topple this field with top weight, COMMANDING CHIEF will have to be able to sit in the pace and outfinish DaCosta's CASSANOVA BOY who has been edging back to form.
Beaten a length and a half in a driving finish by the improved Canada-bred PRICELESS BEAUTY, in 1:18.3 two Saturdays ago,
CASSANOVA BOY has not been able to train as DaCosta would like him to.
However, he has been using races to sharpen the five-year-old gelding who, up to last year July, was the country's top-rated horse, carrying 60.5 kilos when winning the Viceroy Trophy.
Sent off at 2-1 on August 27 at 1300 metres, CASSANOVA BOY swerved at the start but recovered to sit in the pace, while NIPHAL and CLASSIC BEAU jostled for the lead down the backstretch.
He made his move wide off the turn and was challenging the leaders when PRICELESS BEAUTY exploded between horses to
outfinish him.
Undoubtedly a classy horse, COMMANDING CHIEF could get a rude awakening for the first half-mile which should go under 47.0. That and the six-furlong split will ask a lot of the three-year-old, whose last two events were route races, 2000 and 1820 metres, respectively, with the leaders on their bridles, trying to stay the distance.
CASSANOVA BOY knows everything about that type of pace and, although unable to train as he should, will be closer to the leaders than COMMANDING CHIEF.
He should get first run and will be tough to overhaul when he hits the front. No horse has ever taken him off the lead when he picks it up, and that won't change tomorrow.
