IF Bart Cummings worried too much about history, he wouldn't bother even contemplating a spring carnival for Roman Emperor or any sort of a tilt at a 13th Melbourne Cup, reports The Age.It says: But the legendary trainer is too busy looking ahead to worry about what's happened in the past, so supposed damning facts and figures about Australia's greatest race act more as a spur than a deterrent. It is for this reason that Cummings' Melbourne stable goes into today's crucial Turnbull Stakes meetin
IF Bart Cummings worried too much about history, he wouldn't bother even contemplating a spring carnival for Roman Emperor or any sort of a tilt at a 13th Melbourne Cup, reports The Age.
It says: But the legendary trainer is too busy looking ahead to worry about what's happened in the past, so supposed damning facts and figures about Australia's greatest race act more as a spur than a deterrent. It is for this reason that Cummings' Melbourne stable goes into today's crucial Turnbull Stakes meeting at Flemington with some confidence that AJC Derby winner Roman Emperor can make an impact at his Victorian debut. Despite what history tells us.
Cummings was three years old when the only AJC Derby winner went on to win a Melbourne Cup the following season. The year was 1930 and the winner was a horse called Phar Lap.
Cummings has won five AJC Derbys himself and not one of his four previous winners - Ivory's Irish (1995), Beau Zam (1988), Prolific (1984) or Belmura Lad (1977) - ever made it to a Melbourne Cup,
It's one of the great puzzles of horse racing that Sydney's autumn AJC Derby winner is, more often than not, allocated the highest weight of the new four-year-old bunch for the following spring's Melbourne Cup.
This year however, Roman Emperor was allocated equal second highest weight of 54 kilograms in the Melbourne Cup alongside Caulfield Guineas winner Whobegotyou and .5kg behind injured dual derby winner Rebel Raider.
When Cummings, at age 81, became the oldest trainer to win a derby anywhere in the world, with Roman Emperor last autumn, he gave an indication that this derby winner could go on.
''I've had better horses than him, but he can stay,'' Cummings said after the race.
Cummings has removed a lugging bit and tongue tie from his gear and fitted a norton bit to Roman Emperor for today's Turnbull run as part of the four-year-old's training to become a stayer.
''They don't pull with it, helps them relax,'' Cummings said during the week. ''He has settled in [Melbourne] well, they are very happy with him.''