2008 Makybe Diva Stakes

This is a decent race for cups purposes.

First, the Hussler. Comfortable win for the Hussler which should be expected. Let's not kid ourselves, the Hussler went nose to nose with a bunch of resuming stayers.

My issue with the Hussler is this: What is he being targeted for? It would be symptomatic of the hubris of trainers in this country if the Hussler lines up in the cups.

What is wrong with being Australia's best (and it isn't even close) horse over the 1200-2000 metre journeys?

Miss Finland - dominant over the 1200-1600 metre journeys. So greedy D Hayes says: Fuck that, let's embark on a cup campaign!

Usain Bolt - best 100 and 200 metre sprinter ever. Coach: "I want to train a marathon runner. Let's go on a marathon campaign."

Anyway: The Hussler should be targeted at his strength - the W.S. Cox plate.

Zarita - a solid on pace run for second. I don't like reading much into on-pace runs from stayers. It's a run and will do a lot for the horse's fitness. Big Z didn't get a lot of love from punters after that run, but don't be surprised if another good run sees its prices slashed like a turkish rug.

Littorio - certainly flashed home. El Capitan tends to think that this guy will be a bit flat from that run but we'll see. Hopefully that run was for real as he could be a really interesting Cup runner.

Efficient - as good a return as you could ask for from a Cup winner. Came home late and looked very good.

Master O - Looked a little slow to respond to the run of Efficient but wasn't far below Efficient in terms of a cup trial.

The rest: Take on trust. Prefer to see. [insert your own form guide cliche here]