I was asked eight weeks ago who I thought would win the Melbourne Cup and I mischievously said So You Think. Maybe I'm a genius, maybe I'm just lucky but Bart Cummings and his stable have always had a huge wrap on this fella.
He is such a magnificent looking animal it is hard not to be impressed by him when he gets out there on the track and those who think he can't stay the two miles need only to look at Saintly, Cummings' other champion, who defied all the knockers to win the Cox Plate-Melbourne Cup double in 1996.
It says a lot about this horse that Bart thinks he is even better than that brilliant chestnut. But like me, his opinion hasn't changed over the spring and he has always had the confidence that the famous 3200m will not be an issue for him.
It took a while to get the public on board, but based on his powerful win on Saturday, they have flocked in their droves to get on board and there is a danger that he could start shorter than 2-1 in the old, odds almost unheard of in the modern era.
While trying to keep dry on Saturday I couldn't help be impressed by another emerging four-year old in Maluckyday. I have never seen a horse win that race (the Lexus) with such ease. People may think he is just a backmarker on that run, but from barrier six on Tuesday he can settle closer to the pace and finish off well.
I think that So You Think probably has him covered at the moment, but in another six-12 months he could easily improve enough to be the best stayer in the country, assuming Dato Tan Chin Nam takes the $40 million reportedly on offer for So You Think to retire to stud after Tuesday.
I had breakfast with Bart on the morning Saintly won the 1996 Cup and he said to me that day that there's one thing which very few horse trainers have, patience. Perhaps this Cup has come too soon for John Hawkes' emerging star.
I went for a walk up past the back straight at Flemington on Sunday and it looked a lot wetter than I would have hoped. Track manager Mick Goodie is a good operator, but will have his work cut out trying to get the track to play fair and even on Tuesday.
With that in mind, Descarado is probably the main threat to So You Think, given his love for a wet track and his strong win in the Caulfield Cup. I like Holberg. The fact that Frankie Dettori has come out here and is desperate to win the race tells me enough, while Maluckyday is the other one who could fill the placings.