Trainer Darren Weir’s rising sprinting star Nature Strip is weighted to win again when he lines up in the Listed $120,000 A.R. Creswick Series Final (1200m) at Flemington on Saturday.
Nature Strip, above, is well in at the weights for the A.R. Creswick Series Final at Flemington. Photo by Ultimate Racing Photos.
Nature Strip will be having his second run for the Weir stable and under the set weights and penalties conditions of the race, will carry 2kg less than the 60.5kg he lumped to victory in the 1100m three year old Handicap down the Flemington straight on June 23.
The Paul Preusker trained I Am Someone finished four and a half lengths behind Nature Strip at Flemington with 52kg on his back but jumps up to 57.5kg for the A.R. Creswick Series Final, meeting the Weir trained three year old 7.5kg worse off.
The Danny O’Brien trained Order Of Command is another who will be challenging Nature Strip again and will also meet him 3.5kg worse off at the weights after finishing seven and a quarter lengths behind him and stable representative Matt Harrington said he would be struggling to reverse the results.
“It is hard to see how the swing in the weights with the set weights and penalties, how Nature Strip can be beaten,” Harrington told racing.com.
“He is in super form and was amazing the other day. Funny things can happen in racing. We will accept for the race and make a decision later in the week if we do decide to turn up.”
Harrington believes that Order Of Command will be better suited stepping up to the 1200m for the first time this preparation.
“We definitely think so. He was just following the wrong horse last time and we probably thought that if he had been following the right horse he might have finished two or three lengths closer and run a place in that race,” Harrington said.
“He has gone well since and we will just see what happens on the weekend.”
Nature Strip is undefeated from two runs down the Flemington straight and has drawn barrier five in the twelve horse field with last start winning jockey Damian Lane in the saddle again.
Damien Oliver will again be aboard Order Of Command who drew barrier three while Jordan Childs takes over from apprentice Fred Kersley on I Am Someone who has drawn barrier one.
Final Field for the A.R. Creswick Series Final (1200m)
| No | Last 10 | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight | Hcp Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12111×241 | NATURE STRIP | Darren Weir | Damian Lane | 5 | 58.5kg | 89 |
| 2 | 14x110x229 | BEL SONIC | Jason Warren | Chris Parnham | 8 | 57.5kg | 74 |
| 3 | x441320x13 | DOUBLE JEOPARDY | Mathew Ellerton & Simon Zahra | Andrew Mallyon | 4 | 57.5kg | 70 |
| 4 | 3x20312x10 | SPIRIT OF AQUADA | Gareth Andrews | Ben Thompson | 2 | 57.5kg | 71 |
| 5 | 2×21172 | I AM SOMEONE | Paul Preusker | Jordan Childs | 1 | 57.5kg | 68 |
| 6 | 6x2111x232 | SUN QUAN | Mick Price | Craig Williams | 7 | 56kg | 75 |
| 7 | 1x373x27 | KING’S AUTHORITY | Mick Price | Noel Callow | 10 | 56kg | 68 |
| 8 | 023×114 | ORDER OF COMMAND | Danny O’Brien | Damien Oliver | 3 | 56kg | 65 |
| 9 | 4x1x55 | EL MAGNIFICENCE | Pat Carey | Rhys McLeod | 12 | 56kg | 63 |
| 10 | x1848x1115 | EGYPTIAN BULLET | John McArdle | Jamie Mott | 11 | 55.5kg | 81 |
| 11 | 2×1012 | LAYEL | Mick Price | Michael Walker | 9 | 54kg | 67 |
| 12 | 21x21345x | TAGREEDA | Mick Price | Michael Dee | 6 | 54kg | 67 |
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