SPRING CONTENDERS: RUSSIAN CAMELOT

Russian Camelot is undeniably one of the most anticipated horses set to embark on this year's Spring Carnival.

The Northern Hemisphere-bred son of Camelot lined up for just his fifth career start in the Group 1 South Australian Derby, off an unlikely preparatory victory in a Benchmark 64 at Pakenham and blew us all away with his spectacular win on pure, raw ability.

The form guide will tell you he's a four-year-old but in reality, he is at the same stage as an early autumn three-year-old and will need to take the almighty leap necessary to be competitive in our most time-honored, prestigious races.

His trainer Danny O'Brien is first to admit that but he cannot wait to put Russian Camelot to the test.

For Racing.com's Spring Contenders, I spent a morning at O'Brien's property in Barwon Heads to see how Russian Camelot is progressing.

The first thing I noticed in the well-lit barn is the boom colt's coat does not reflect the middle of winter, it's bright with a healthy glow, a sign of an internally contented horse.

O'Brien utilises the beach at Barwon Heads on a daily basis but less known is the fantastic 2000-metre straight track with kikuyu grass and sand gallop he has at his property, with a dog leg, much like you'd see in Britain.

The 50 horses based at Barwon Heads are worked in lots either in their grass gallops or sand-track canters, and on a cold winter's morning with the carnival just around the corner, there is a spring in everyone's step.O'Brien explained, in his own words, how Russian Camelot's preparation towards a Melbourne Cup is progressing.

"Russian Camelot is pretty forward because he didn't have long off after Adelaide, he's a colt and we like to keep those horses going rather than spelling them for too long," O'Brien said.

"He just had a couple of weeks on the walker and out in the paddock during the day, just to space him though to spring.

"He does plenty of work most days down the beach and he'll do a couple of miles up and down the beach there and he's just doing maintenance gallops on his own.

"We've got a 2000-metre grass and sand track, we do all of our galloping on our grass here and the slow work on the sand.

"He's got a great nature, he's a bit boisterous but he's got a great temperament. Kenny, one of our Irish boys, rides him every day and they get along very well, he's pretty straightforward, he loves going to work and loves to gallop.

"He's a big robust playful colt and the day at Caulfield (when he reared in the barriers and was scratched pre-race) he just got fed up, he had been there a long time.

"We were very confident then when we got him to South Australia in May that he'd come on and matured enough to run really well in a Derby, and he didn't let us down.

"I think we have got those sort of things ironed out and he really matured from his trip away to Adelaide, did everything right over there so I'm sure coming into this spring he'll be a much more mature horse again.

"We're really excited about getting him back to the races, and I'm sure everybody else is too, to see what he's capable of this spring.

"He's always been a really impressive horse from the moment he stepped off the plane, we were pretty much in love with him, he's such a good-looking horse.

"He really got ahead of the curve for us last spring, it was the first time we bought European yearlings (from the Tatts Sale) when we had him and we didn't know what to expect.

"But he trialed so well for us early in the spring last year, we thought we'd run him, albeit it as a two-year-old against the three-year-olds and was very impressive at Ballarat.

"He made a big jump, even if he wasn't a Northern Hemisphere-bred (against older horses) it's a big jump from maiden company to a race during Melbourne Cup Week and he ran very well in that.

"He's a March foal, so he's always been six months younger than the horses he's competed against so far and hasn't received any weight allowance for that, so going into this spring not only is the age gap closing, but he'll also get a weight allowance in the weight-for-age races, he'll be weighted as a three-year-old.

"He's effectively at the same stage of his life cycle as a an Australian three-year-old would be around Christmas time, so when he comes back he's effectively an autumn three-year-old and generally those horses do make a pretty good improvement particularly as they get closer to the end of their three-year-old season.

"He'll be getting close enough to his top toward the end of the spring.

"So it's really just about pacing him through to the right races and we didn't think there's much point running him until the Makybe Diva Stakes, big track at Flemington over a mile is probably the ideal starting point for him.

"He could easily go to the races anytime over the next few weeks but it's just a matter of waiting for the right race.

"We might take him into Geelong one day and given him a day out there soon."He'll be down at Flemington for August 10 for a jumpout.

"Everything is still there to be decided depending on how he comes back, we'd love to think he could run in the Cox Plate, we think he's a high-class horse but it's a big jump from what he's achieved so far to competing against the best horses in Australasia and potentially internationally in the Cox Plate.

"We'll get a good guide on where he's at after the Makybe Diva Stakes, potentially then run him in the Turnbull Stakes and then there's option of going to a handicap like the Caulfield Cup or going to the Cox Plate.

"You're just always cautiously optimistic as a horse trainer, you have got to be very focused on the day-to-day routine and let the races take care of themselves when you get there and then you still need a lot of luck on race day.

"We got to the Melbourne Cup last year, we'd done our job but without an exceptional ride from Craig Williams we could have easily run seventh or eighth.

"It's very exciting for any stable to have horses that have got the potential to compete in these types of races, a lot has to go right during the spring but we're well placed."

By Grace Ramage @Racing.com