KEY POINTS:
Mark Purdon says he has the horsepower to turn around a tough week at Addington tonight.
The champion trainer suffered yet another setback leading into a feature race when early favourite Ohoka Arizona was pulled out of tonight's $50,000 Superstars Championship with a potentially career-ending injury on Tuesday.
And the next day, Purdon's second-stringer Steve McQueen was sold to Victorian trainer Gavin Lang, forcing him out of tonight's race as well.
To most trainers, the loss of two major race winners of their calibre would be enough to ruin their season - in the case of Purdon and training partner Grant Payne it has merely put a dent in the aura of invincibility.
The stable still has Texas Hold Em in tonight's Superstars, as well as the best two 4-year-olds in the country, Auckland Reactor and Fiery Falcon, to come back to racing.
And tonight Purdon unleashes a strike force including Harness Jewel winner Highview Tommy as well as impressive last-start winners Mercurio (race five), Joyfuljoy (race seven) and Sunset Star (race eight).
"It is always a shame to lose a horse as good as Ohoka Arizona but we are lucky we have plenty of nice horses to go on with," he said with typical Purdon understatement.
Texas Hold Em was impressive enough winning fresh-up to suggest he can take out the Superstars, with his biggest concern possibly drawing one on the 10m mark.
That means he may not get much of an advantage at the start over back markers Bettors Strike and All Tiger, both of whom are fast beginners.
One of the three should win the race, with so much depending on the start, an area where All Tiger has an advantage. He can make a flyer when wide on the track, where he will begin from the unruly tonight, and he could make up much of his handicap inside the first 200m.
That gives him a slight edge over Texas Hold Em and Betters Strike, although the latter looks an open class pacer in waiting.
Highview Tommy meets speedy and race-fit opponents in the Sires' Stakes heat and could be vulnerable.
While he has looked good at the trials, he is drawn wide enough his driver Blair Orange may be reluctant to blast him hard off the gate in case that forces him to have a gut-buster fresh-up.
"He will go close on class but he improves with racing," said Purdon.
Purdon rated Mercurio a chance to down his more illustrious stablemate tonight, while Cullens Creek and northern Sterlish are capable of upsetting but will need luck from tricky draws.
The open class pace provides a perfect opportunity for Report For Duty to return to winning form after a luckless start to the season in the Hannon Memorial.
He was forced to sit parked in that comeback race but is far more likely to be handy on the markers tonight and is the one to beat.
But with the northern stars who are set to dominate the New Zealand Cup not in the race, any one of Waipawa Lad, Zenad, Mr Molly or Tribute could win without surprising.
WINNERS' FACTORY
* Mark Purdon has lost Ohoka Arizona and Steven McQueen from his stable this week.
* But he has winning chances in three major races at Addington's premier meeting tonight.
* The meeting sees the first serious inter-island clashes of the new season.
* It also features a $250,000 terminating Pick6.
