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| LONG RANGE INTERVIEW WITH MIKE DE KOCK (13 June) | ||||||||||
| ARO: | You have 3-y-o Badger's Coast and 4-y-o Fort Defiance in the field. How do you feel about their weights? | |||||||||
| MD : | Very happy. I think both horses have been extremely fairly treated by the handicapper. | |||||||||
| ARO : | Badger's Coast pipped El Picha when they met on exactly WFA terms in the J+B Met. With 51,5kg he must take a power of beating as long as his recent setback is not too serious. | |||||||||
| MD : | The horse slipped when freshing on a tarmac road and sustained surface abrasions. This necessitated a week off work, but I think he has recovered fully and he has been back in full work for the last two days. I think he will be at his best for the race, but he must have a strong pace in order to race to the limit of his ability. He will need to give of his best to concede half a kilo to The Sheik, but he is very good in a fast run race, and we should be hard to beat at best. | |||||||||
| ARO : | How has Fort Defiance progressed since his trial? | |||||||||
| MD : | That was his first run after being gelded and a long layoff. I expected a better run from him, but, judged on his improvement in work since the race, I must believe that he needed that race very badly. | |||||||||
| ARO : | Fort Defiance has never run to his best at Greyville. Can punters expect an improvement in the Rothmans July 2000? | |||||||||
| MD : | The horse has now been gelded, a factor which I think will result in greater consistency in his form line. In my opinion he has matured into a stayer, not a speed horse. He is a well grown, long-striding galloper, so I don't think he will run to his best at Greyville unless he is allowed to stride along. My thinking is that we will not restrain him in any way in this year's Rothmans July. Given a searching gallop I think punters can expect a big run from him under the handy weight of 53,5kg. | |||||||||