First up specialist Classique Legend pulled off one of the wins of the day at Randwick on Saturday to take out the Group 2 The Shorts (1100m) on his way to The Everest.
The son of Not A Single Doubt was having his first run back since June, but always looked a serious chance in the market with two wins from three starts to his name fresh.
Jockey Kerrin McEvoy, who rode Classique Legend to a win in the Listed June Stakes at Randwick over the same distance during the Autumn, proved the difference as the pair found themselves with plenty of work to do over the final furlong.
The grey found himself at the very rear of the field, but showed an enormous turn of foot to shift to the widest part of the track for a late swooping win.
Classique Legend has firmed significantly in The Everest 2020 betting following Saturday’s win in The Shorts. Photo: Steve Hart.
Classique Legend, owned by Bon Ho, already owns a slot in next month’s $15 million race on October 17.
The five-year-old is having his second crack at the world’s richest turf race after running sixth behind Yes Yes Yes last year, and trainer Les Bridge, a man of few words, thinks he’s a red hot chance.
“It doesn’t surprise,” Bridge said of Saturday’s win.
“He’s the best horse I’ve ever trained. Couldn’t do much better than that could you? Some have got four cylinder motors, he’s got a V8, that’s the difference.”
Bridge won this race with Hot Danish back in 2011, while Saturday’s victory marked McEvoy’s first winning ride in The Shorts.
Punters can now find Classique Legend at $5.00 in the futures The Everest odds at Ladbrokes.com.au after firming in from $10.00.
After swooping in late in The Shorts, it’s fair to say he stands a serious chance with plenty of pace expected early.
Eduardo did well to run on for second, while Bivouac is sure to take big improvement off his first-up run.
The complete all-in 2020 The Everest betting market courtesy of Ladbrokes.com.au can be viewed by clicking here.
2020 The Shorts Results
| Colour | Finish | No. | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Bar. | Weight | Penalty | Starting Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
1 | 3 | CLASSIQUE LEGEND | Les Bridge | Kerrin McEvoy | 10 | 57kg | $4.40F | ||
 |
2 | 5 | EDUARDO | Joseph Pride | Nash Rawiller | 1L | 9 | 57kg | $11 | |
 |
3 | 1 | BIVOUAC | James Cummings | Hugh Bowman | 1.2L | 12 | 58kg | $5 | |
 |
4 | 10 | DIRTY WORK | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | Tommy Berry | 1.4L | 5 | 55kg | $6 | |
 |
5 | 7 | STANDOUT | Gerald Ryan & Sterling Alexiou | James McDonald | 1.9L | 4 | 57kg | $6 | |
 |
6 | 6 | SPLINTEX | Mark Newnham | Joshua Parr | 2.1L | 11 | 57kg | $26 | |
 |
7 | 8 | GREYWORM | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | Brenton Avdulla | 3.3L | 6 | 56kg | $9 | |
 |
8 | 9 | TACTICAL ADVANTAGE | Kris Lees | Jason Collett | 4.8L | 2 | 55kg | $51 | |
 |
9 | 12 | PRAIRIE FIRE | Danny Williams | Ms Rachel King | 6.1L | 3 | 55kg | $301 | |
 |
10 | 11 | IRISH SONGS | Kurt Goldman | Sam Clipperton | 7.6L | 7 | 55kg | $201 | |
 |
11 | 4 | BALL OF MUSCLE | Joseph Pride | Glyn Schofield | 9.9L | 8 | 57kg | $51 | |
 |
12 | 2 | CATALYST (NZ) | Clayton Chipperfield | Glen Boss | 14.4L | 1 | 58kg | $9.50 |
Table Credit: Racing Australia.
