KEY POINTS:
They won't only be selling tickets to watch the $1 million Karaka Million at Ellerslie in a few weeks, they'll sell tickets to the barrier draw.
Such is the building interest in New Zealand's inaugural running of the million-dollar race for graduates of the Karaka yearling sale.
We've
already seen and bet on some of the hopefuls, few more impressive than last Saturday's Te Rapa winner San Bernardino.
But much of the real talent has yet to be seen on raceday.
Two getting ready to jump into the frame for recognition are Murphy, a Captain Rio colt at Cambridge with Anne Herbert, and Straitothepoolroom, a No Excuses Needed filly with John Sargent at Matamata.
Murphy was winning his third barrier trial from as many attempts when he bolted clear of the opposition at Cambridge on Tuesday.
The compact colt has explosive acceleration, but looks to do it easily.
It will be interesting to see what he's capable of when he gets put under pressure.
Anne Herbert is trying to have him ready to debut at Taupo on December 30.
"But I might be a gallop away from getting him there.
"He will definitely run at Ellerslie on January 12 and I'll be trying to get him to Taupo before that race."
The stable has turned down huge money for Murphy, who has made a big impression each time he has been seen in public.
Straitothepoolroom bolted away with her barrier trial at Avondale recently and will make her debut at Ellerslie on Wednesday.
The Matamata filly gradually wound into her sprint at the trials, rather than exploding away, and looked to be still getting quicker at the finish.
"She's not very big, but she's a real runner," says John Sargent.
Stats, remarkably, show that since the track has been remodelled it is a long way from impossible to win from outside barriers at Ellerslie's 1200m starting point - once considered a nightmare for horses drawn outside No 9 or No 10.
Baldessarini proved you could win from wide there by taking the country's premier sprint, the Railway Handicap, two years ago from the extreme outside.
But 2-year-olds don't have the toughness or the experience to sit wide in a competitive race and kick on and win like some of the older horses.
And that makes the barrier draw crucial, particularly because raced contenders like San Bernadino are natural runners.
Concerto, who is from the Richard Yuill and Steve Goodin stable, made a huge impression when he won on debut on Avondale Cup day, coming from last.
He joins fellow previous winners He's Licarocket and Solo Flight at Ellerslie on Wednesday in what should be one of the many thrilling upcoming Karaka Million previews.
