Unusual Suspect sets sights on Melbourne Cup run

By Peter Fitzgerald
Updated November 6 2012 - 12:54am, first published October 24 2011 - 10:12am

Wollongong's Melbourne Cup hopeful Unusual Suspect is set to bypass Saturday's Derby Day meeting and head straight into the race that stops a nation.Part-owned by Thirroul's Peter Lord, Unusual Suspect was expected to have a final Cup hit-out in Saturday's Group 1 Mackinnon Stakes (2000m) at Flemington ahead of the 3200m classic.But despite yesterday being nominated for the race, connections are leaning towards not having another run before next Tuesday's $6.2 million Melbourne Cup.Unusual Suspect stormed into Melbourne Cup calculations following a barnstorming sixth-placing in the Caulfield Cup 10 days ago.The unheralded American eight-year-old ran the fastest sectionals of any Caulfield Cup runner, which prompted bookmakers to slash his Melbourne Cup odds into $31.Should he draw a favourable barrier at Saturday night's draw, his odds are expected to shorten further again.Lord, who has been in constant contact with the horse's Cranbourne-based trainer Mick Kent, wasn't expecting to make a final decision on Unusual Suspect's immediate future today."We'll make our minds up later in the week I'd say," he said."The horse is right."We don't have to run him, he's in the Cup, he's coming along nicely. If we were to run him, it would be more of an educational thing but we'll see how he is later in the week and see what Mick thinks before any decision is made."Unusual Suspect was one of 26 nominations for Saturday's Mackinnon Stakes.Among the entries were the Caulfield Cup trifecta of Southern Speed, Green Moon and Tullamore and Cox Plate place-getter Rekindled Interest. Unusual Suspect was also one of 47 horses paid up for as second declarations for the Melbourne Cup yesterday.He is eighth in the order of entry and guaranteed a Cup run, another reason why connections could opt against running him on Saturday."Given what's happened with almost every other contender falling over as the line gets nearer, we just don't want anything to happen to him," Lord said."I guess you could say we're on tenterhooks a bit."If he doesn't run Saturday, he'll have a fair dinkum hit-out on Thursday or Friday to top him off nicely for the Cup."Unusual Suspect is yet to race at the fabled Flemington circuit but Lord has no concerns about heading to the Melbourne Cup without any previous experience on the track."He's won on seven different tracks [around the world] at his first attempt, so I'm not worried about that as a factor," he said.Unusual Suspect was ridden by top jockey Nash Rawiller in the Caulfield Cup and while it is likely he will remain with the eight-year-old at Flemington next Tuesday, the decision is yet to be finalised.Rawiller is the stable jockey for leading Sydney trainer Gai Waterhouse, who could still have two Cup runners of her own in Tullamore and Older Than Time.But Rawiller is a heavyweight jockey and won't be able to shed enough weight to ride either of Waterhouse's runners, which should free him to ride Unusual Suspect."It's almost finalised but we might just have to wait a couple more days to have it officially sorted," Lord said of the jockey situation."Hopefully Nash will ride him because he's a great jockey and he's ridden the horse before."Unusual Suspect will carry only 54kg in the Melbourne Cup.

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