Barry Baldwin has warned he will seek stewards' permission to withdraw Burdekin Blues from his Eagle Farm assignment on Saturday if the track is downgraded to heavy.Eagle Farm was rated a slow (7) on Thursday following two afternoon storms this week.If the track rating was not bad enough for Baldwin, the news only got worse when the six-year-old drew barrier 17 in the Ambassador Travel Handicap (1200m) in which he has topweight of 61 kilograms.Burdekin Blues spent almost a year off after undergo

Barry Baldwin has warned he will seek stewards' permission to withdraw Burdekin Blues from his Eagle Farm assignment on Saturday if the track is downgraded to heavy.

Eagle Farm was rated a slow (7) on Thursday following two afternoon storms this week.

If the track rating was not bad enough for Baldwin, the news only got worse when the six-year-old drew barrier 17 in the Ambassador Travel Handicap (1200m) in which he has topweight of 61 kilograms.

Burdekin Blues spent almost a year off after undergoing surgery on both front knees which ruled him out of last year's Brisbane winter carnival and the spring carnivals in Sydney and Melbourne.

His main summer mission, the Group Three George Moore Stakes at Eagle Farm last month, was abandoned after being washed out on consecutive Saturdays.

Burdekin Blues returned from his injury-enforced break to finish second at Doomben last month before failing on a heavy track when fifth to Paprika in the Bat Out Of Hell (900m) at the Gold Coast on January 1.

"I don't want to run him again on a heavy track," Baldwin said.

"He doesn't get through it and if I run him again it could knock him about too much."

Baldwin will dodge a clash with Black Caviar in the Group One Newmarket Handicap (1200m) at Flemington in the autumn and is reluctant to take on Hay List in next month's Group Two Expressway Stakes (1200m) in Sydney.

"He won't be going south unless he earns his way," Baldwin said.

"I've spoken to (jockey) Shane (Scriven) and he's still confident despite the alley but I'm not so confident.

"The sun is blazing today so hopefully the track will dry out.

"If he gets a good track he'll take a lot of beating despite his big weight and the bad alley."

Burdekin Blues, the winner of 11 of his 21 starts, will come into barrier 13 if the emergencies drawn inside him don't secure starts.

Baldwin has never seriously contemplated returning to Melbourne with Burdekin Blues and anythoughts of a change of plan were dashed once Black Caviar was set for the autumn sprints.

Burdekin Blues won the 2009 Expressway Stakes at Rosehill before failing behind Scenic Blast in the Group One Newmarket Handicap that year.

He returned in the spring of 2009 to claim the Listed Grazia Style (1100m) at Flemington before suffering a ligament injury when eighth to Nicconi in the Group One Lightning Stakes (1000m) at Flemington last January.