All too easy

Black Caviar's half-brother left his rivals in the shade yesterday to become a shining contender for the Golden Slipper, reports Craig Young.

There was a touch of Black Caviar's racetrack arrogance when the wonder horse's half-brother All Too Hard yesterday staked a stunning claim for Saturday's $3.5 million Golden Slipper at Rosehill.

Like Black Caviar has been throughout her unbeaten 19-run stretch, All Too Hard was contemptuous of his rivals in winning yesterday's Pago Pago Stakes at the track.

Prepared by John Hawkes, and sons Michael and Wayne, All Too Hard is owned by mining magnate Nathan Tinkler, who spent $1.02 million to purchase the colt.

All Too Hard has won three from three and after being throttled back by jockey Dwayne Dunn in the closing stages, the colt joined the unbeaten Blue Diamond winner Samaready at the top of Golden Slipper betting.

"I'll have a talk with the boys, Nathan, about it [the Golden Slipper]," John Hawkes said. "We've got until Tuesday, we don't need to rush."

All Too Hard's overall time wasn't as quick as that of the Allan Denham-trained Ichihara in the opening event at Rosehill, although Ichihara couldn't match All Too Hard's final 600-metre sectional.

For Ichihara's owner-breeder, George Altomonte, a Golden Slipper start will require a late-entry fee of $175,000. "That's three out of three for her," Altomonte said. "She won at Wyong at her first start, broke a record up there, and was good at Warwick Farm. I'll have to have a look at the times she has run, she is not nominated for the Slipper and I'll talk to Allan and go from there. She is a pretty smart filly and I think she'll be better in the spring."

But it was all about All Too Hard, although Hawkes, when asked about the Golden Slipper, described Samaready as "the best horse of all the two-year-olds."

"She is better than the rest but the barrier draw squares them all up," the trainer said.

When it came to the X-factor, Hawkes reckons All Too Hard "has had it from day one".

"He is doing things he shouldn't be doing," Michael Hawkes said.

"He is going to be an absolute cracking three-year-old. He is such and adaptable horse, you can ride him forward or back. From day one he has been a natural."

The type Dunn reckons will appreciate the Golden Slipper "hustle and bustle" for "he has a nice turn of foot, he can pick them off".

"We always thought this one had group 1 potential," Dunn said.

All Too Hard accounted for Darley's Stud Narcissus, which looked in for the fight early in the straight but Dunn hadn't even moved on the long odds-on favourite.

"He [All Too Hard] went with me and then went away from me," Christian Reith said. "I thought that is it, in the end my bloke was able to hold his ground, although I don't know if it was All Too Hard switching off."

Dunn ventured on the track knowing what the Hawkes team required.

"John told me first of all, today was all about winning and then it was looking after him," Dunn said. "We were able to do that, we had them covered."

Asked about Samaready in the Golden Slipper, Dunn was matter of fact. "She has got a good asset, she can race on the speed and has a turn of foot," he said.

"She probably deserves to be favourite. She has done it, he has the potential to do it."

Story: SMH

Photo: www.sportpix.com.au