The 2013 Victoria Derby odds of former favourite Complacent have lengthened after he drew barrier 16 yesterday but jockey Kerrin McEvoy remains confident that the Authorized colt can give him his first ever win in the Group 1 event at Flemington on Saturday.
Complacent is chasing his second victory at Group 1 level in the Victoria Derby after winning the Spring Champion Stakes in impressive fashion. Photo by: Steve Hart
Complacent was favourite for the $1.5 million event at a price as short as $4 on Monday but has now drifted out to Victoria Derby odds of $5.50; with punters choosing to support stablemate San Diego and Robbie Laing-trained Polanski.
McEvoy admits that the outside gate does make the assignment a bit more difficult for the Darley three-year-old but he told Sky Racing HQ that he can’t fault the form of the Spring Champion Stakes winner heading into Saturday’s race.
“It will make it a little more of a harder job and he is a horse that has gone forward from inside draws and relaxed,” McEvoy said.
“Hopefully we can get him in a spot, in a nice rhythm, get him relaxed and he can run the trip out.
“I rode him at work this morning and he is in good form so we just need a bit of luck from the gate.”
McEvoy said that he is yet to decide how he will ride Complacent and will wait until he sees how the race unfolds before making a decision on where to position the Group 1 winner; with his main goal to put Complacent in a position where he can relax and run out a strong 2500 metres.
“We will just have to wait and see and the draw obviously makes it a bit more interesting and opens the race up for those that have drawn better barriers,” McEvoy said.
“We will just have to see how it unfolds.
“It can be a messy race in terms of horses there that don’t run the trip and you can get back and have horses that don’t take you into the race.
“There is going to be a couple of plans in my mind going forward and one of those plans will be getting him in a nice spot, a nice rhythm and switched off to run the trip out.
“The last thing that you want to be doing is too much work to go forward and then you are a spent penny by the time you hit the home straight.
“The best possible route is what I am out there to obtain on Saturday and that is what I will be doing.”
Savvy Nature remains the favourite for the race, at Victoria Derby odds of $4.80, but there has also been plenty of support for Polanski ($6.50) and San Diego ($7); who McEvoy rates as the biggest threats to the horses coming through the Spring Champion Stakes.
“I think that the San Diego and Polanski form is going to be strong,” McEvoy said.
“They are both strong stayers and you would probably say that Criterion, Savvy Nature and Complacent are a bit sharper type of horses.”
McEvoy has finished second in the Victoria Derby on four occasions, with Induna (2011), Duelled (2005), Kempinsky (2003) and Hydrometer (2002) but is yet to win the time-honored race.
