Tuesday's New Zealand Cup result just proved how hard it is for Australian trainers to go across the Tasman and beat the kiwis on their own patch of dirt. With Auckland Reactor and Blacks A Fake absent, the attraction of the one million dollar race was tempting for Barry Lew, Lance Justice and John McCarthy and all three decided to take on the gruelling two mile standing start event with stable representatives.

Monkey King proved he is the ultimate stayer when Ricky May brought him into the straight with a well timed run to go past Bettor's Strike and Smoken Up. Smoken Up was brave after starting from inside the second row. When the draw was initially released the Justice trained gelding looked set to start from the outside of the front row but when Bondy was scratched and an emergency gained a start, Smoken Up was pushed back to the second row. He started well and after working through the traffic well Justice opted to go forward just inside the two lap mark and find the front. Karloo Mick had stepped well off the front row and found the lead early but Greg Bennett was happy to hand over to Smoken Up. The Aussie pair were well placed and even when the three wide train appeared at the bell those who had backed Smoken Up and Karloo Mick would have been happy.

Justice asked Smoken Up to go inside the final quarter and he slipped away from the field with Karloo Mick getting off his back to be the initial challenger but the Dubbo Destroyer's charge was only short lived and he never looked a winning chance. Smoken Up looked to be holding his rival half way up the straight but when Monkey King got to the outside he was always going to run down Smoken Up. Bettor's Strike battled on well for second and Smoken Up held on for third in front of Pembrook Benny.

It will be interesting to see whether the connections of Monkey King are interested in a Miracle Mile start and what the directors of the New South Wales Harness Racing Club thought of the beaten runners. Up until his New Zealand Cup run I would have thought Karloo Mick was in a strong position to push for a start but with invitations at a premium this year, he now might be one of a group fighting out for the last three spots.

Auckland Reactor was simply awesome on Cup Day in the junior Free-For-All and looks unbeatable in the NZ FFA on Friday which would give him his second win in the event. As I write this column he is yet to be invited but I would expect that an invitation for the New Zealand freak would only be days if not hours away.

The Mitavite Newcastle Mile is going to be an interesting race this Saturday night and while the three placegetters from last year all made their way into the Miracle Mile it is difficult to see three runners from this year's field being invited. The barrier draw has made the race even tougher to work out with the majority of the leading hopes drawn wide on the track. Cant Bluff Me has drawn gate 11 but will start from 10 with the emergency out. Lombo Pocket Watch has drawn 9 and was impressive last week at Harold Park but he still has a bit to prove before I am fully convinced that he is back to his best. He dashed away from his rivals last week and looked like he wanted to be a racehorse but he still needs to take the scalps of some of Australia's leading horses before I consider him back to his best. Lonestar Legend was impressive last week at Newcastle but this week is a step up again. He was driven quieter last week and appreciated the tactics reeling off a very fast last half. Blake Fitzpatrick has always said that Lonestar Legend will be at his best when he can sit on the back of some fast speed and he may just get that opportunity on Saturday night.

The new kid on the block is the other Fitzpatrick runner, Saucy Legend. He won as he liked last start at Harold Park and while he is jumping up in grade this week he looks set to take the next step to FFA company. It is hard to write off Special Albert considering he won last year's Newcastle Mile but he has drawn gate 10. He was good at his first run back from a spell but this is tougher and he is going to need a lot of luck.

So in saying all that, who am I tipping? At this early stage I am going to go with Cant Bluff Me despite the draw to beat Lombo Pocket Watch and Saucy Legend.

How good was Melpark Major last Friday night at Tabcorp Park in the Legends Mile? He was only three tenths outside the track record and raced his way into the Miracle Mile with a comfortable victory. Amy Tubbs is currently suspended so Greg Sugars took the reins and if for some reason Amy can't drive in the future, trainer Alan Tubbs has a very good replacement. Melpark Major went very well for Sugars and the victory on Friday night should stop all of the questions around his recent form. He is back and looked brilliant!

Let's hope the participants in NSW calling for changes to the new whips rules from January 1 get a fair hearing from the administrators and decision makers. After listening to some of the most experienced horsemen in New South Wales comment about the rules, it seems as though the biggest sticking point is whether the drivers should be allowed to cross the reins. Under the new rules drivers will not be allowed to and while the New Zealand set-up is a rough model for the Australian changes it was interesting to see most of the leading New Zealand drivers put both reins in the one hand as they got close to the finish on Cup Day.

Catch you next week.