Racing: The Orange Agent on fire for Alexandra Park

The Orange Agent (No4) wins Race 8 Pascoes The Jewellers Northern Oaks Mobile Pace 2700m Auckland Cup Festival at Alexandra Park . Photo / Jason Dorday

Maurice McKendry admits a few months ago he would have been worried about taking on older, hardened rivals with superstar filly The Orange Agent.

However, not any more and that spells trouble for her rivals in tonight's $20,000 sprint at Alexandra Park's final meeting of the season.

The multiple group one winner is only starting at a midwinter meeting to further hone her fitness for the Breeders Crown, which has semifinals at Ballarat on August 22 before finals eight days later.

With few other lead-ups between now and then, The Orange Agent is forced to take on some talented types like The Fascinator, Johnny Fox and Cyclone Kiwi tonight and while none of them are in her 1:51 mile class, hard-running older horses can be hard to claw past over 1700m at the Park.

But McKendry says the stronger, more mature version of The Orange Agent boosts his confidence tonight.

"She used to be a little bit funny in her races but she has just kept getting better mentally," says McKendry. "Now she handles the racing better and you can ask her to do more in a field."

While the ultra-conservative McKendry stops short of declaring The Orange Agent a winner tonight, his belief he can drive her pretty much how he likes should be enough to secure victory.

She was brilliant albeit in a two-horse race at Cambridge last week, overcoming a 26.5 second opening 400m and her 1:51.1 mile at the Jewels two starts ago puts her a good two seconds clear of any of her rivals tonight on best performances.

Even if McKendry is reluctant to press forward early to try and lead, which would ease punters' anxieties, the best version of The Orange Agent should be able to sit parked and win in a 1:55 mile rate tonight.

The Fascinator and last Friday's brave runner-up Cyclone Kiwi look the most likely to benefit from any bad luck the favourite suffers.

The final meeting of the season starts with a bang, with some talented juveniles in El Jacko, Bite The Bullet and Motown meeting in the first, any one of them good enough to start red hot in a normal maiden race.

A surprise newcomer to winter racing is classy trotter Any Old Way (R3), where it appears trainer Paul Nairn has brought him to Auckland to campaign while he tackles Victorian riches with Conon Bridge, who races in the A$50,000 Redwood at Maryborough on Sunday.

Any Old Way looks lengths better than his rivals yet gets into the field with a 10m lift in the handicaps because of his concession driver so should simply win.

And the maiden trot, race two, will have a high-profile spectator watching from Sydney as talented debutant Angus Bolt is part-owned by champion jockey James McDonald.

McDonald asked trainer Brent Mangos earlier this year if he had any decent horses he could take a share in and the 2-year-old colt was the answer.

With his breeding and trials form Angus Bolt will have plenty of support tonight.

"I'm pretty excited about it and I'll be watching for sure," McDonald told the Herald.

Season finale fancies

• Best bet: Any Old Way (R3, No.6). Thrown in on class and handicaps.

• Star attraction: The Orange Agent (R6, No.6). Don't often get to see a genuine superstar racing at The Park this late in the season.

• Luckless: El Jacko (R1, No.6). Speed duel loss was costly last Friday but performance was a beauty.