Middle Earth's Cups aspirations continue in Underwood Stakes

From the moment Middle Earth arrived in Australia for his initial campaign, he made a significant impact.

His first start resulted in victory in the Australian Cup Prelude (2000m) at Flemington, followed by a fifth-place finish in the Australian Cup.

The subsequent time Middle Earth featured in the placings was in the JRA Cup at Moonee Valley in October of last year, preceding his third-place finish in the Melbourne Cup.

It's a common pattern for European stayers to perform well early in their Australian stints before their form gradually improves over longer periods.

This is precisely the scenario the Ciaron Maher stable is anticipating as they set their sights on the Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup with Middle Earth, who is taking a crucial step towards those events in the Group 1 Underwood Stakes (1800m) at Caulfield on Saturday.

Middle Earth spent his winter period in Queensland's warm climate, securing a win at Doomben in May, and then made a pleasing return with an eighth-place finish in the Heatherlie Stakes (1700m) at Caulfield on August 29.

Jack Turnbull, National Assistant Trainer for Ciaron Maher Racing, commented on Middle Earth's steady progress in his Cups campaign, noting his assigned weights of 55kg for the Caulfield Cup and 56.5kg for the Melbourne Cup, which is a 2kg rise from his weight in last year's Melbourne Cup.

"He's great," Turnbull said.

"I think he's sharpened up off the break and last preparation. We won a Group 3 at 2000 metres up in Queensland.

"He gets winkers back on and it's all part of the process to get him up in trip.

"We feel he is sharper and better (than last year) and he'll be on to the Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup, and he is one of our better chances."

With Melbourne expected to experience sunshine on Friday and a warm day on Saturday, Turnbull expressed that the ideal racing surface for Middle Earth would be a track rated between Good 4 and Soft 5, similar to favourable European conditions.

Turnbull indicated that a strong showing would be well-received by the stable, as Middle Earth is scheduled to compete in the Turnbull Stakes (2000m) at Flemington on October 3, as part of his preparation for the Caulfield Cup.

"If you're running well in an Underwood, it generally carries through to races a bit later on," Turnbull said.

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