It's not the premier event during the Darwin Cup Carnival, but it certainly has attracted the best field.

The 2011 celebration continues today with the running of the $45,000 Sky Racing Metric Mile (1600m) at Fannie Bay - Day 5 of the Carnival.

"It's truly a fabulous line up," leading Darwin racing figure Jamie Chadwick said yesterday of the 10-horse field. "With due respect to Very Fast, who only brings moderate form to Darwin, every other horse in the race is capable of winning as it boasts impressive form.

"After studying the form for most of the week, I have settled on Montego Bay, but I've got a feeling that Sound Of Nature could produce something special and Bolton ran well last start.

"And how can you ignore the likes of Hawks Bay, Blackbriar, Palmyra Boy and General Mazeratti."

The $175,000 Carlton Mid Darwin Cup (2000m) on August 1 certainly has the prestige, but the race basically rewards the horse with the best staying power.

Although many of the starters in today's glamour race are fine-tuning their preparations for the Cup, at least the Metric Mile is more of a level playing field.

Leading Darwin trainer Stephen Brown, who will get a Cup start if Bolton salutes the judge today, was not as enthusiastic as Chadwick when it came to assessing the 2011 Metric Mile field compared to previous years.

However, Brown did concede that is was no easy task settling on a trifecta.

The Neil Dyer-trained Palmyra Boy, who set the track record for 1600m in the corresponding race last year, will be aiming for his third consecutive victory in the famous Metric Mile.

Palmyra Boy stopped the clock at 1.34.86 to beat Hawks Bay and Shout Out Loud, who went on to win the Darwin Cup nine days later from Hawks Bay.

Story courtesy of David White, NT News