MORE Than Ready colt Better Than Ready could easily play the spoiler this weekend and deny Queensland idol Buffering a long waited Group 1 win in the B.T.C Cup (1200m) at Eagle Farm.
Better Then Ready has won 6 of his 10 starts and is the current 1100m track record holder at Randwick sizzling across the turf in a time of 1:8.19s when he won the Brian Crowley Stakes in the spring.
The 3YO arrives at Eagle Farm tomorrow off a dominant 1.3-lens win in the Listed BTC Mick Dittman Plate (1000m) at $1.60 favourite.
“A good pace would suit him, he can get off the speed and run on,” trainer Kelly Schweida told Sportsman.
“He didn’t get much of a chance to travel the other day, they whipped along a bit, and 1200m is better.
“I presume they will put a fair tempo on but I wouldn’t think the two jockeys (Browne and Bowman) are going to carve each other up.”
Schweida said there is still improvement in Better Than Ready as he heads towards the Stradbroke and while not as well suited at weight-for-age he expects a big effort.
“The Stradbroke is probably his race on handicaps but it is a Group 1 and we’d like to win a Group 1 somewhere,” he said.
“He’s a nice horse on the way up and he worked super last Saturday and a first three finish would be ideal.”
