Trainer Noel Mayfield-Smith fears the handicapper as much as the opponents of Famous Seamus in the BRC Sprint at Doomben on Saturday.
Famous Seamus will be aiming for a winning hat-trick in the Group Three 1350m sprint where he will carry 58.5 kilograms, a rise of one-and-a-half kilograms on the weight he carried to victory in the Prime Minister’s Cup (1300m) at the Gold Coast on May 4.
“He’s going well but I’m a little bit concerned about the weight – they haven’t missed him,” Mayfield-Smith said.
“They’ve got no option but to put him up in weight again because he’s basically meeting the same field he beat in the Prime Minister’s Cup apart from one or two others.”
Famous Seamus has drawn barrier three for the BRC Sprint which will be his last run before his main goal in Brisbane, the Group One Stradbroke Handicap (1400m) at Eagle Farm on June 8.
Mayfield-Smith won the Stradbroke in 2000 with Landsighting who carried the same colours as Famous Seamus.
Landsighting tops the Hawkesbury-based Mayfield-Smith’s personal list of good horses he has trained but he believes Famous Seamus has the potential to be even better.
“He’s probably not as mature as Landsighting was (at the same time) and I think he’ll be a better horse twelve months from now, but he’s going well and the trip away has done him the world of good too,” he said.
Famous Seamus will again be ridden by Glen Colless who has struck up an affinity with the gelding in his Queensland campaign.
“Glen rides him as he should be ridden with a bit of cover which allows him to finish off his race strongly,” Mayfield-Smith said.
Chris Munce is hoping for fine weather to improve the chances of his mount Belltone, who was beaten by stablemate Sizzling in a course proper work-out on Tuesday morning in heavy going.
“His first up run was terrific but he doesn’t really appreciate the wet the way a horse like Sizzling does,” Munce said.
In an open betting race, Famous Seamus is the $6 equal favourite with the Peter Moody-trained Ready To Rip for the Sprint.