Craig Williams believes a favourable barrier draw has given his mount All American a great chance of taking out Saturday's $1 million Caulfield Guineas.Williams pointed to statistics on the Group One 1600m feature which suggested it was usually an advantage to draw inside barrier five.In the past 21 runnings 13 winners have jumped from gates one to four, the latest of those being Weekend Hussler who came from barrier two last year.Williams said he did not have the choice of the David Hayes-train

Craig Williams believes a favourable barrier draw has given his mount All American a great chance of taking out Saturday's $1 million Caulfield Guineas.

Williams pointed to statistics on the Group One 1600m feature which suggested it was usually an advantage to draw inside barrier five.

In the past 21 runnings 13 winners have jumped from gates one to four, the latest of those being Weekend Hussler who came from barrier two last year.

Williams said he did not have the choice of the David Hayes-trained pair Von Costa De Hero and All American in the Guineas but was happy to be riding All American who drew barrier four while Von Costa De Hero came up with 14.

"He (All American) was handed a fantastic barrier so if I was waiting for barriers I'd be on the horse I'd like to be on," Williams said.

"History has shown it is advantageous to be drawn in close."

Williams hadn't ridden All American in a race until two starts back when he ran ninth to Typhoon Zed second-up in the Group One Manikato Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley on September 13.

He also had the mount when the Red Ransom colt was runner-up to Guineas favourite Whobegotyou in the Group Two Bill Stutt Stakes (1600m) at the Valley on September 26.

"David won the Guineas with a horse called St. Covet (1994) who had run second in the Bill Stutt, drew barrier four in the Guineas and won it," Williams said.

Hayes is shooting for his third win in the race having also won it with Palace Reign in 1992.

Kerrin McEvoy, the number one rider in Australia for Sheikh Mohammed's Darley operation, will ride Von Costa De Hero for the first time in a race in the Guineas, replacing Williams who has ridden the colt in the last six of his seven career starts.

Those included his win in the VRC Sires' Produce Stakes (1400m) at Flemington last March and his narrow defeat when runner-up to Sebring in the Golden Slipper Stakes (1200m) at Rosehill in April.

"Even as two-year-olds I always had a leaning towards All American. Going towards the Golden Slipper he was my choice, but David put me on Von Costa De Hero and he was right again," Williams said.

All American ran fifth in the Golden Slipper with Brad Rawiller in the saddle.

Sheikh Mohammed will also be represented in the Guineas by the Lee Freedman-trained Time Thief who drew barrier nine and will again be ridden by Dwayne Dunn.

The Redoute's Choice colt did a good job from a wide gate (11) when runner-up to Fernandina in the Guineas Prelude (1400m) at Caulfield on September 20, a race in which Von Costa De Hero finished third.

Alan Eskander said Betstar had taken a $20,000 bet Thursday on the Mark Kavanagh-trained Whobegotyou at $4 and his quote had been shortened to $3.60.