Racing: Last week's stars face stern tasks after drawing badly

Punters will be keen to back Secret Potion at Oamaru. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Superstars one week, in trouble the next.

That sums up the draws of Carabella and Western Cullen in their group one features at Addington on Friday night.

Four days ago the pair dominated their huge-money races at Addington.

Carabella led throughout in the $140,000 Nevele R Fillies Final and Western Cullen came from near last to win the $250,000 Sales Series Pace.

But they both face the worst possible draw - one on the second line - in their similarly important targets on Friday.

Carabella's draw is the one which will cause the most acute headache for punters and bookmakers as she has drawn behind her main rival, Maid In Splendour, in the $125,000 NZ Oaks.

Maid In Splendour will obviously be keen not to do Carabella any favours so the tiny filly may have to pull back to last if she is to continue on her winning march.

That could put her out to $1.50 in fixed odds markets, especially as Miss Elsie (three) and Collectable (four) have also drawn well, meaning her main threats are drawn to be handy.

Western Cullen would have started a hot favourite had he drawn well in the $180,000 Sires' Stakes Final but will have plenty of company he knows alongside him because, remarkably, his trainer Mark Purdon has four starters in the race and they have all drawn the second line.

The meeting will be the central focus of a nervous weekend for many harness racing owners hoping to qualify their horses for the $1.2 million Harness Jewels on June 4.

Jewels qualification is based on stakes and closes on Sunday night. So those on the cusp of making the 12-strong fields need to win money this weekend or hope those behind them on the stakes ladder do not.

Those tussles start early, with several youngsters trying to cement their Harness Jewels places at Cambridge on Thursday night, before Addington and Alexandra Park on Friday.

And one of the most nail-biting Jewels attempts will come at Oamaru on the final day of qualifying.

Secret Potion is a $3 second favourite for the 4-year-old mares' division of the Jewels, a race she can win now hot favourite De Lovely has been withdrawn.

But she sits only 16th on the order of entry and needs others to pull out or she must win a $10,000 race, off a 20m handicap, in a capacity field on Sunday to even qualify for the Jewels.

That will ensure motivation is high in her camp and punters won't get a better lead on a Sunday winner at Oamaru for a while.

The Harness Jewels acceptances are taken next week and the fields will be drawn on May 27, with many of them looking far more open than in previous years as the long season has taken its toll on some of our age-group stars.