Racing: No need to hunt for a Hero

Three and a half kilos is like a concrete block in a jumping race these days.

That's an awful lot of weight No Hero will be giving last year's Great Northern Steeplechase winner Just The Man in tomorrow's $50,000 Braxton Waikato Steeplechase at Te Rapa.

But you can't see him beaten.

You cannot come up with a scenario that will make him vulnerable as he attempts to make it nine straight steeplechase victories.

The truth is we are not thick on the ground with topclass 'chasers at the moment. And No Hero is truly a great horse.

As good as we've seen in years.

Add to that tomorrow's track conditions - just into the slow region - which is just perfect for the Hawkes Bay leaper.

No Hero has had, for him, an unorthodox preparation.

Two maiden flat races then, because of Riverton's centenary, a trip to the bottom of the South Island.

As tough as No Hero is, travelling that far then home to the Bay has not been easy on him.

"We had to give him a quiet 10 days when he got home, which is why we had to run him on the flat at Wanganui last week.

"That race was quite hard on him - he knew he'd been to Wanganui - but I doubt we'd have got him to Te Rapa without it."

As much as this race is interesting for the public, it is a means to an end for Paul and Carol Nelson.

To follow tomorrow's race No Hero will run in the Hawkes Bay Steeplechase after which his next main mission is England's Cheltenham Gold Cup next March.

Considerable planning remains to be done by the Nelsons before the trip is a certainty, but having few alternatives should be the final push.

The Grand National is the world's mos

t famous steeplechase in terms of publicity, but it is merely a stock car race where this year only nine runners, less than one third of the original field, finished the race.

Cheltenham has the integrity of the industry and is where the good horses gather.

"There is no way he'll be going to Australia.

"They hammer our horses in the handicap over there and he'd be carrying in the 70s every start."

So this and the next race are vitally important to the Nelsons.

After those No Hero will not race again before heading to the Northern Hemisphere early next year, so a below-par performance in either race will leave the Nelsons wondering and with little guide to whether they should press ahead with the trip.

No Hero is so dominant in betting for tomorrow that at $1.60, the profit on the second favourite Just The Man ($7) is times 10.

Jonathan Riddell will be re-united with No Hero.

In Riddell's absence, the dashing grey was ridden to victory at Riverton by Joanne Rathbone.

Trainer Davina Waddell has made no secret of the fact she has aimed Just The Man at this race.

The Northern winner looked likely at the second-last fence at Te Rapa two weeks ago and yielded late to Tokiocity, giving the impression he would be fitter next time out.

Beyond that a win would be a major surprise.

The TAB has Havana City third favourite at $7.50. He has good course stats - his final steeplechase win last winter was on the course and he ran on strongly into third behind Tokiocity here two weeks ago.