Racing: Justice lodges strong Miracle Mile claim

Smoken Up is fit for the Miracle Mile. Photo / Gary Wild

The week building up to the Miracle Mile is often full of verbal battles and attempts to gain the psychological advantage before the super sprint.

But one Aussie horseman thought he would try a different approach and let his ironhorse Smoken Up do his talking for him ... on the track.

In a tactic almost unheard of in that part of the world, Lance Justice unleashed the veteran speed machine in a dazzling 2200m trial at Melton, outside Melbourne, on Monday night.

Just 10 days after a rigorous New Zealand Cup week campaign, Smoken Up was sent on a mission designed to instil fear in the minds of rival drivers in Saturday's SEW Eurodrive Mile.

Justice let Smoken Up pace a 1:54.4 mile rate when winning the trial by a whopping 76m.

In doing so, he roared over his last 1600m in 1:53.9, the final 800m in 54.3 and 400 in 26.9.

While closing 800m sectionals that quick occasionally come out of the lighting fast Ashburton track, for any pacer to trial in a 1:54 mile rate over 2200m is unheard of but Justice said the run was just what Smoken Up needed.

"If it [the trial] had been 1700m I would have gone the mile in 1:51, because he can do that," said Justice.

"He needed a hard run because he hadn't done much after Cup week but that will make him spot on.

"I think he is ready to go under 1:50 on Saturday night."

The trial and Justice's words will surely mean only Blacks A Fake will engage in any sort of speed duel with him come Saturday because his belligerence would make such tactics pointless.

While Smoken Up doesn't have blazing gate speed he does begin quickly and saves his best form for Menangle, where he endured a rugged run before only being beaten a neck by Monkey King in last year's Miracle Mile.

"It is his favourite track and every time he has started there he has won or produced the run of the race," said Justice.

"So I couldn't be going into the Mile happier. I am going to go for the lead all out and even if I have to sit parked, which I don't think I will, I am going to make it a staying test."

While his speed and courage are undeniable, just as tangible is Smoken Up's record, which suggests he always finds a pacer good enough to beat him at the absolute highest level.

Usually it is Blacks A Fake or Monkey King and he faces those dual demons - both drawn inside him - on Saturday.

Smoken Up's sizzling trial has failed to impress punters yet, with bookmakers having him steady at $5.50 third favourite in Australia, while he has got out to $6 with the NZ TAB.

Monkey King has been backed on both sides of the Tasman, tightening as short as $2.40 here and averaging around $2.80 in Australia.

The greatest discrepancy in the markets is for Blacks A Fake, who hovers around $3 in Australian markets but is out to $4.40 with the TAB.

The Miracle Mile will be run at 11.10pm (NZT) on Saturday.