Blackbriar will be the centre of attention at Pioneer Park this afternoon.
The Melinda Boothby-trained gelding steps out in the Red Centre for the first time, taking on a strong field in the $10,000 XXXX Gold Weight For Age (1400m).
Blackbriar has been nothing short of outstanding in his short Territory career, destroying his opponents by eight and three quarter lengths on debut at Fannie Bay, before stylishly winning the St Patrick's Day Cup last month.
He arrived with the rest of Boothby's team Just Rory, Hannesburg and Brooke's Bizzo last weekend and has had no trouble settling into life in Alice Springs.
"He pulled up fine from the last run and I'm happy with him," a confident Boothby told the NT News.
"He galloped yesterday (Thursday) and his work was really nice. He handled the track well."
Rated a $2.50 favourite in early markets, Blackbriar will not have it all his own way with a couple of interesting opponents ready to throw out a challenge.
Darwin Cup runner He's Here ($4) returns to Pioneer Park a track where he has won five of his seven starts after a recent stint in Adelaide.
And Robdon Flyer ($3.50) will have his first start for the Ken Rogerson stable since arriving here after racing in Victoria.
The field also includes NT Derby runner-up Faster Buster as well as Red Centre stalwarts Barstool, Calabisca, Scat Singer and Spakatak.
Boothby is taking it in her stride and looking forward to race day.
"This is a big test for Blackbriar, hopefully he can handle it," she said.
"There's a few that I'm worried about, but I think most of them are worried about me."
What Blackbriar does on the track will determine the path Boothby takes for the rest of the carnival.
The six-race card gets under way at 2.30pm, with the last at 5.52pm.
Story courtesy of Tom Biddington, NT News
