Caloundra Cup 2016: Maurus first, and remainder racing for second

QUEENSLANDER Michael Nolan has all but conceded the Caloundra Cup to Maurus and feels everything else is probably running for second.

QUEENSLANDER Michael Nolan has all but conceded the Caloundra Cup to Maurus and feels everything else is probably running for second.

Nolan trains equal second favourite Jumbo Prince but feels $1.70 favourite Maurus is a potential Caulfield Cup horse and almost unbeatable on Saturday.

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“I don’t think we can beat Maurus and I don’t think any other horse in the race can either,” Nolan said.

“I would be happy if we ran second to Maurus, just like we did in the Ipswich Cup.

“I thought we were going to win the Ipswich Cup because Jumbo Prince was going really well in the run, then Maurus just came around us effortlessly and won with absolute ease.

“Maurus is so good I think he could be a Caulfield Cup horse, and we are all probably running for second in the Caloundra Cup.”

Plenty of other trainers feel the same way about Maurus, with Kiwi Murray Baker believing his mare Gesemi may be just making up the numbers.

Baker described Gesemi’s Tatt’s Cup run as “average at best” and feels she probably will not be good enough to get near Maurus on Saturday.

While Toowoomba-based Nolan has the highest respect for Maurus, he is looking forward to getting Jumbo Prince out to the 2400m of the Cup.

He always thought Jumbo Prince would be competitive at 2400m but hasn’t been able to test him, partly because of the Eagle Farm track closure.

Jumbo Prince (purple silks) takes out the Toowoomba Guineas in May last year. Picture: David Martinelli

“I have always thought of Jumbo Prince as a good stayer and I have been keen to get him up to a trip like this,” Nolan said.

“I think he is at his best at distances of 2000m and further but he has run in a lot of 1600m races because of the programming of races.

“As a three-year-old he ran really well over the longer trip (including his third in the 2015 Queensland Derby) and I’m sure he will run well.”

Nolan said Jumbo Prince would need a good Jim Byrne ride from a tricky gate on Saturday, and could yet press on to the Grafton Cup on July 14.

Chris Waller’s stable has some confidence top weight Index Linked can become only the second horse to win back-to-back Caloundra Cups.

“He’s backing up from a great win the other week (Tatt’s Cup). He’s got a good jockey in Kerrin McEvoy on board,” Waller’s racing manager Charlie Duckworth said.

Mick Kent’s Cup hope Holy Cow was scratched on Sunday after being stuck in Victoria due to problems with the plane trip north.

Originally published as Caloundra Cup 2016: Maurus first, and remainder racing for second