If Saturday's Caulfield Cup was a boxing bout, Single Gaze wouldn't be able to compete in the heavyweight division.
The game mare only weighed 431kg on Monday and will give away up to 70kg to her heavier rivals in the $3 million event.
Her light frame hasn't stopped Single Gaze amassing more than $1.6 million in stakes in a career that started with a win as a pre-Christmas two-year-old in November 2014.
Punters dismissed the slight filly on that occasion as well before she stormed home after a slow beginning to beat a field that included subsequent Golden Rose winner Exosphere and Group III winner Counterattack at $81.
Being small has not prevented Single Gaze scoring a Group III win at Kembla Grange, a Group I victory at Rosehill and a Group II success in Brisbane in partnership with regular jockey Kathy O'Hara.
But now a Caulfield Cup, historically a brutal race, awaits the little daughter of Not A Single Doubt on Saturday and her Canberra-based trainer Nick Olive has her right for her toughest assignment.
Olive has given Single Gaze a hard trio of runs in the Makybe Diva, Underwood and last Saturday's Ladbrokes Stakes in which the five-year-old has competed well with Caulfield Cup fancies Humidor, Bonneval, Gailo Chop and Johannes Vermeer at weight-for-age.
"She has just kept on running well and we can't fault her," Olive said.
"She's so tough and she just keeps improving with racing so we're really looking forward to Saturday."
A seven-day back-up between the Ladbrokes Stakes and Caulfield Cup meant Olive only gave Single Gaze a light canter to stretch her legs at Caulfield on Tuesday morning.
One could be forgiven for thinking a seven-day back-up would not suit Single Gaze but she handled a short turnaround well in Brisbane in the winter, winning the PJ O'Shea Stakes (2200m) on June 3 before running second to Chocante in the Brisbane Cup a week later.
"The seven-day back-up won't be a problem," Olive said. "She handled it really well in Brisbane and the main thing that beat her that day was the outside barrier."
Olive had one fear before Tuesday's barrier draw but that was allayed when she drew barrier 12.
"Barrier one or two would have been the worst place for her," Olive said.
The rest is up to O'Hara and the little chestnut mare in their attempt to beat the big boys in the Caulfield Cup.
Sportsbet has Single Gaze as a $34 chance to give Canberra a Caulfield Cup win.
