Victorian trainer Robert Smerdon says the track condition at Warrnambool on Sunday will be the key to Black And Bent's chances of bouncing back to winning form in the Kevin Lafferty Hurdle.
Black And Bent failed to extend his Australian record sequence of successive wins over the jumps beyond 10
when he ran third behind Gotta Take Care and Wells in the Brendan Dreschler Hurdle at Bendigo last Sunday week. He returns to Warrnambool, the scene of his two Galleywood Hurdle wins, and is likely to face off again against Gotta Take Care in a field also set to include up-and-comer Macedonian.
"Being a quality handicap, he's going to meet some of these horses worse at the weights but the prospect of wet ground enhances his chances," Smerdon said of Black And Bent.
"That seems to be what separates him and Gotta Take Care. When Gotta Take Care is on the good ground he's very hard to beat, but he's not that happy on the heavy which our bloke handles.
"That's where the advantage goes one way or the other."
