An irrigation malfunction at Bathurst will make punting interesting at Bathurst on Friday but I am still planning to have something on a John Sargent-trained three-year-old.
Stewards have rated the Bathurst track a soft (5) surface but the additional track information tells us the track is actually a heavy (8) from the 450m to the winning post due to an irrigation malfunction.
Punters will need to tread warily but despite the additional hurdle placed before punters in terms of a heavy track in the straight I am still keen to invest on the John Sargent-trained The Big Boss in the On Trac AG Maiden Plate (1408m).
The Maiden Plate will be race six on the program so racing patterns for the day should be established giving punters some chance later in the day.
A three-year-old son of Al Maher, The Big Boss made a promising start to his racing career finishing a close third at Goulburn on debut coming from back in the field and hitting the line strongly over 1200m.
The Big Boss had shown up in three metropolitan trials finishing less than two-lengths form the winner in each of them on tracks designated as good and soft and with his debut run on a heavy (10) track already in his limited career has shown he is likely to be adept on any sort of going which is handy to know with the unknowns about the how the track may play on Friday.
The Big Boss hit the line at Goulburn in a manner that suggests he will relish stepping up in distance on Friday and with the benefit of race experience rates as the best bet on a day that has the potential to be extremely tricky for punters.
