Pierro's the James Bond of racehorses

PIERRO loves to channel his inner-Daniel Craig as he slowly struts from the water, every muscle and sinew glistening - a physique licensed to kill.

Pierro

IF Pierro didn't know any better, he would think he was James Bond, channelling his inner-Daniel Craig as he slowly struts from the water, every muscle and sinew glistening from a physique licensed to kill.

Okay, licensed to kill any punter brave enough to back against him.

"That's exactly what it's like," grins Gai Waterhouse's long-time racing manager Mark Newham. "He's like a young guy at the beach, flexing his muscles and walking proudly. He wants people to notice him. He wants to be the star of the show. He's aware of how good he is."

Those who don't believe in the romanticism of the track will snicker at such imagery, but those who spend their lives around thoroughbreds know of their true personalities.

As late legendary trainer George Hanlon once said: "Horses, they're only human."

In Pierro's case, he might be more.

Waterhouse has never said an ill word of her horses, but you suspect it's not hyperbole when she says the black colt is the best she's ever trained.

Jim Cassidy is the most experienced jockey in the land and he climbed off Pierro's back after smoking More Joyous in an epic Canterbury Stakes and declared: "He's the best horse I've ever ridden - better than Might and Power."

Pierro will saunter into the barriers as a short-priced favourite in today's Group 1 George Ryder Stakes (1500m) at Rosehill Gardens and it will be another step along the road of superstardom, having already claimed the Golden Slipper and Triple Crown - but inevitably closer to the end.

Owner Greg Kolivos, who races the horse with wife Donna, faces a pleasant struggle between heart and wallet; race Pierro as a four-year-old next season, with another tilt at the WS Cox Plate in mind, or retire to him to stud with talk of $30 million offers already on the table.

Pierro cost $230,000 as a yearling at the Magic Millions sales. He has won almost $3.9 million in prizemoney thus far. That's a profit of ... well, a lot.

"I keep getting reminded what a great racehorse he is, and in the same breath keep getting reminded he's probably the most exciting stallion prospect to hit the breeding industry in many, many years," Kolivos says. "It's a nice problem to have."

That's a question for the future, though. Let's worry about now, with James Bond in his prime.

Pierro wears the black coat of his famous father Lonhro and his even more famous grand daddy Octagonal.

Apart from their chiselled appearances, the distinguishing feature between the three is their race-day temperament and presence.

"That's him to a tee," says Newham when asked to compare. "He's very relaxed in the mounting yard, he canters to the barriers, saving himself.

"He saves every piece of energy for the race."

Newham knows his horseflesh. He was Bart Cummings' travelling foreman when he was 20 and been atop Waterhouse's best. He won't let anyone else ride Pierro at trackwork, unless the boss says so.

"Then he looks at the opposition and I'm sure he's aware that he's better than them," Newham continues. "It may sound strange to non-horse people, but he has an intimidating presence for his opposition at the races."

The distinguishing factor between Pierro and Octagonal is their toughness.

If you want an appreciation of Occy's resilience, You Tube the 1996 AJC Derby when he ran down Saintly, Nothin' Leica Dane and Filante.

Pierro's toughness was there in his first-up win in the Hobartville, when he refused to concede defeat.

"You'll see when he's under pressure," Newham says, "he will stretch as far as he can, his neck out as far as it goes, his ears flatten, his stride is as long as it can possibly be. That's his way of getting the maximum out of himself."

His toughness was also there for all to see in the only defeats of his 12-start career.

In the Caulfield Guineas last October, he had been sent out a $1.22 favourite but jockey Nash Rawiller had exhausted him riding up the hill until the first turn. All Too Hard had his measure, from a softer run.

When jockey Corey Brown climbed off Pierro after the Cox Plate, he said he'd been running on "flat tyres" from the previous run at Caulfield. Pierro had still run third.

It makes you wonder what he could do in the Cox Plate again, from the horse Cassidy and Waterhouse and everyone else seem to rate so highly.

Whether he gets the chance is the $30 million question.The immediate future is reasonably clear. When Kolivos spotted him at the Magic Millions, he scribbled in his catalogue: "Could make a lovely Doncaster horse, trained by Gai."

If everything goes to plan today in the George Ryder, victory in the famous mile race almost seems pre-ordained.

But what thereafter?

"From our point of view, it's not really a struggle with the wallet," Kolivos says. "Not to speak out of school, but he could've been sold many times over in the past 12 months. From the day he won the Golden Slipper, we've had people beating the door down. If there was just that for us, we might have already done it and he might have been racing for a stud by now. We love the horse, as you could imagine."

Then the owner says this: "He's put his stamp on the racing game. At some stage, it would be great for him to put his stamp on the breeding industry. Some young Pierros running around."

The Bond girls are already be lining up.