Expensive test

He is ranked in the top 10 for this month’s rich Inter Dominion harness racing series at Tabcorp Park Menangle, Bathurst and Newcastle.

Yet the horse many expected might threaten King Of Swing in the series, Expensive Ego, lost a few admirers with a disappointing fifth to The Black Prince in last weekend’s $100,000 Len Smith Mile.

While trainer Belinda McCarthy and her reinsman/husband Luke have King Of Swing on track to start series favourite, it will be back to the drawing board with Expensive Ego, despite his amazing record of 17 wins from just 25 career starts.

Team McCarthy will send Expensive Ego around in Race 6 at Tabcorp Park Menangle on Saturday night, where the stallion has been installed a $1.80 favourite, despite having to come from the outside of the front line.

Yet Luke McCarthy admits Expensive Ego will probably need to be back to his best to consider going on to contest the Inter Dominion, with the first round of heats at Menangle now less than three weeks away.

“I thought he (Expensive Ego) was a touch unders in the Len Smith (he started $1.35 favourite),” McCarthy told HRNSW this week.

“In hindsight, I probably should have gone to the breeze straight away but I was in the one-one and following Ignatius and it was hard to pull out behind a horse like him.

“We’ll give him a solid hit-out tonight and if he goes as well as we expect, the owners are keen to press on to the Inter Dominion.

“Punters might want to wait until after tonight’s race but if he comes out and goes really well and dominates, he’ll definitely go to the Inters.

“If he doesn’t go as well as he should, well, we might instead look at sending him for a spell.”

Watch last week’s Len Smith Mile where Expensive Ego finished fifth:

McCarthy said the stable’s superstar pacer, King Of Swing was in great order as he prepared for the gruelling series.

“King Of Swing is ready to go,” he said.

“He had 10 days off after the Victoria Cup and we will trial him 10 days before the heats and he’ll then go into the series fresh-up.”

McCarthy’s other current stable star, former American square-gaiter Aldebaran Revani will not contest the Inter Dominion trotting Championship against the likes of Tough Monarch and Funky Monkey but will instead be heading south for races like the Great Southern Star in Victoria.

To view the fields for Menangle on Saturday night click here.

By Michael Court for HRNSW