Yet that is exactly what stable driver Tim Williams is labelling Motu Premier, the hot favourite for tomorrow’s Waimate Cup.
The call comes as the pacer rebuilds his career after missing nearly a year of racing through injury.
‘‘He is probably the forgotten horse a wee bit,’’ Williams said.
‘‘He is a pretty class horse, and has been through [ages] 2 and 3.’’
Williams cited Motu Premier’s second in Lazarus’ 2015 Harness Jewels win as a measure of his record.
His whole 2yr-old season was classy, too. Motu Premier placed six times at group race level at that age, each time behind one of his more heralded stablemates in Lazarus as well as Chase The Dream and Waikiki Beach.
The Bettor’s Delight 4yr-old was restricted to eight 3yr-old starts, but is quickly making up for that by contesting a string of South Island country cups races.
Motu Premier will attempt to add the Waimate Cup to the Hororata and Cheviot Cup wins of his last two starts.
The scary thing for his opponents is that he should strip an even fitter horse tomorrow.
‘‘He has had three or four runs under his belts now and he has got progressively better each run this time. It looks a nice race for him,’’ Williams said.
Though they look below the class of Motu Premier, Williams rates his opponents on Oamaru’s grass surface an ‘‘even’’ bunch.
From his 40m back mark, the safe, but not fast, beginner’s best chance of coming undone could be from race tactics, Williams said.
The likely candidate for that could be the Graham Telfertrained and Dexter Dunn-driven Boomer Bailey.
On his best game the pacer can set a fast tempo and work his way to the front from his 10m mark.
Franco Tristan, too, looks a key rival for Motu Premier to get past. The Steven McRae trained pacer has a 30m head start on the favourite and has a Wairio Cup win to his name in his 10-start career.
Williams drives one other horse on tomorrow’s’s 11-race programme in trotter Hestia Franco in race 7.
The Leslie Smart-trained 6yr-old is largely out of form, but could well be suited by today’s 2000m standing start race.
Hestia Franco was a fast beginner ‘‘nine starts out of 10’’, Williams said.
- Jonny Turner
