John Bary with Jimmy Choux. Photo / APN
John Bary is starting to think he at least has an inkling how Graham Henry might be feeling.
And the two Kiwi conditioners are both facing the biggest moment of their careers on the same weekend.
"Well, I hope it ends up that way," said Hastings trainer Bary yesterday.
Bary's superstar Jimmy Choux is the favourite for the A$3 million Cox Plate at Moonee Valley on October 22, a day before the Rugby World Cup final.
Rugby-mad Bary is hoping to start a huge Kiwi winning weekend.
"Wouldn't that make for a great weekend, although I think I'd be watching the rugby through bloodshot eyes if we win," he told the Herald.
While the pressure Henry and the All Blacks are under as red-hot RWC favourites dwarfs the scrutiny Bary will come under in the next month, a Cox Plate win would still be a career-changer for Bary and he says he loves the spotlight.
"If I was playing rugby and we had a penalty to win the World Cup in the last minute I'd put my hand up to take it," said Bary.
"That is just the sort of person I am and in my chosen career I now have something similar to that. I have the right horse to be the absolute best and I want to give him the chance to do that."
But while Jimmy Choux may be the Cox Plate favourite, Bary knows the hard work is still to be done.
"It's like the All Blacks. Sure, they might be favourites but as they know from the past they don't give World Cup winners medals away, you have to go get them.
"It is the same with the Cox Plate. It might not look the strongest Cox Plate ever but they aren't going to give it to us just for turning up."
Bary confirmed yesterday that Jimmy Choux will start in Saturday's $300,000 NZ Bloodstock Spring Classic, a race he was originally going to miss. "He is just doing so well we have to start him otherwise he is going to go mad and run through a fence," said Bary.
"He was going crazy in his paddock for two days after his last win and while I thought about missing this race I underestimated how much stronger he is now.
"The racing simply doesn't take as much out of him." Bary says with the Spring Classic being on his back doorstep the 2040m group one was too good to bypass.
"He has done the legwork so I didn't really have to change his training at all for him to be ready for Saturday. And he is ready.
"Also, I will head to Melbourne more comfortable knowing he has had a 2040m race under his belt."
The news of Jimmy Choux starting in the Spring Classic has seen him shorten into $1.70 favouritism with the TAB and that could be matched on the tote as punters will struggle to find a rival to back against him with most having doubts over their form, distance credentials or group one class.
Jimmy Choux is $7 favourite for the Cox Plate with most Australian bookmakers.
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