FAVOURITE Loucasso is the big winner from the final make-up for next Saturday night’s $1.5 milliion TAB Eureka field.
Leviathan owner Kevin Seymour, fresh from winning last week’s iconic NZ Cup with the great Leap To Fame, completed the 10-horse field for the world’s richest pacing race today (Sunday) when he chose Path To Greatness to fill his slot.
Seymour’s other option was three-year-old Fire And Passion, which would have changed the preferential barrier draw.
“It came down to Fire And Passion and Path To Greatness and, as good as Fire And Passion was winning last night (Saturday), Grant (Dixon) just felt Path To Greatness was the way to.”
Path To Greatness will get his second crack at the TAB Eureka after finishing seventh last year.
Seymour will have two TAB Eureka runners with his star four-year-old Fate Awaits landing Wayne Loader's Western Jewel slot.
With only a trio of three-year-old’s in the TAB Eureka, Loucasso cannot draw worse than gate three.
Victoria Oaks winner Bettor Beach has already created history by becoming the first three-year-old filly to gain a slot in the four-year history of the TAB Eureka.
Under the preferential draw, the Emma Stewart-trained filly must draw gate one.
There will be a separate draw between Loucasso and the Mick Stanley-trained Soho Charmer for gates two and three.
The remainder of the field, all four-year-olds, will draw barriers four to 10 when the marbles fall on Tuesday morning.
“For a while it looked like there could have been many more three-year-olds in the race, so just three is a real help to us,” Loucasso’s trainer-driver Seaton Grima said.
Loucasso is $2 favourite pre-draw favourite after winning all six starts this campaign since joining Grima’s stable.
But history is against him.
No three-year-old has won the TAB Eureka, but they have been very competitive.
Bay Of Biscay was three when second to Don Hugo in 2024 and then returned last year to win at four.
Three-year-olds Fox Dan, Hesitate and Go Miki ran second, third and fourth to Bay Of Biscay.
Bettor Beach, one of four Emma Stewart and Clayton Tonkin-trained runners in the TAB Eureka, is the X-factor. Their other runners are Cigano, Fox Dan and The Last Trip.
Mark Pitt will take the reins and slot owner Mick Harvey (Harnesslink) insists she will be very dangerous.
“I took her because she had to draw the pole and get an easy run and I think she’s shown she can handle pressure in those last couple of wins,” he said.
“If they go as hard as I expect and she gets a crack at them late, she’ll be right in it.”
Cigano will be driven by Jason Lee with Will Rixon aboard The Last Trip, but no driver has yet been confirmed for last year’s runner-up Fox Dan.
FINAL TAB EUREKA FIELD: Loucasso, Double Lou, Soho Charner, Bettor Beach, Fate Awaits, Cigano, Fox Dan, The Last Trip, Hesitate, Path To Greatness.
