Bivouac out to emulate Sepoy in G1 Manikato Stakes at Moonee Valley

A form-card bristling with positives, a month of perfect training and an encouraging piece of history will all come together for Bivouac on Friday night when he bids for a second G1 in the Manikato Stakes at Moonee Valley.

But in the eyes of his trainer James Cummings, the biggest thing in Bivouac’s favour is simply his immense talent.

“He’s a three-year-old against older horses in this race, but I think he’s shown that he’s a very good three-year-old,” Cummings said.

“It’s no easy feat at this early stage of the season to beat the older horses, but over the years the record of three-year-olds has been quite good.”

There is no doubting Bivouac’s class and ability – and if there were, he banished them with his last-start defeat of Yes Yes Yes in the G1 Golden Rose at Rosehill last month.

That was the second time Bivouac has beaten Yes Yes Yes who has since received rave reviews for his victory in The Everest at Randwick last week. Bivouac also beat Yes Yes Yes into second place at his previous start in the G2 Run To The Rose.

Since then Bivouac has pleased the Cummings’ team and will be fresh and ready for Friday night’s 1,200m test.

“We saw a G1 performance from him in the Golden Rose and he’s had a month between runs to get himself back together and ensure that he’s ready for another G1 performance,” Cummings said.

“He’s looking great, his training has been excellent. A little jumpout last week kept him ticking over and I think he’ll handle the Valley quite well.”

“The biggest test will be racing against the older horses. He’s got to prove he’s up to the task.”

While he is doing a good job of creating his own history, Bivouac also has the record of one of his owners best Australian horses, Sepoy to support his Manikato bid.

In 2011 His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, champion sprinter Sepoy won the Manikato from barrier one with Kerrin McEvoy in the saddle.

On Friday night, Bivouac will also jump from barrier one with McEvoy aboard.

While Cummings has great respect for the older horses confronting Bivouac, it may well be the three-year-old fillies Loving Gaby and Anaheed who will be the hardest to beat.

Loving Gaby beat Godolphin’s Exhilarates in the G3 Champagne Stakes for fillies at Moonee Valley on Sept.27 and has since finished second to California Zimbol in the same class at Caufield.

Anaheed also beat a field of fillies in the G3 Blue Sapphire at her most recent start and is bound to find it tougher in open company despite receiving weight all round.

Meanwhile, another international campaign begins for Red Galileo at Geelong in a race that has become a stepping stone to the G1 Melbourne Cup.

Red Galileo will have his first Australian start in the G3 Geelong Cup, a race won nine times in the past 11 years by European horses.

Notable among those are Americain and Dunaden who both went on to victory in the Melbourne Cup and Bauer who was a close second in 2008, while Media Puzzle put the race on the map with his win in 2002.

Red Galileo comes to the race off a close second to Mustajeer in the Ebor at York in August, but his form at his first start after stepping off a plane also supports his claims in Australia.

The eight-year-old won first time out in Dubai, he finished second at Newmarket on his return to England and after a second mission to Dubai he returned again to England and won at Newmarket first time out.

Trainer Saeed Bin Suroor said he is satisfied Red Galilieo has brought his good English form with him to Australia.

“Red Galileo has enjoyed another excellent year so far and ran very well to finish second in the Ebor on his latest start,” Suroor said.

“He travelled out to Australia in good order and is ready to go.

“He is dropping down to a mile and a half but has run some nice races over this distance. We are looking for a good start to his Australian campaign.”

While he isn’t familiar with Geelong, Red Galileo should be at home in Wednesday’s race whose 11 runners all began their careers in Europe, including last year’s Melbourne Cup runner-up Prince Of Arran.

Godolphin will also be represented on the Geelong card by Whispered who will run in the Listed Geelong Classic, a traditional lead-up to the G1 Victoria Derby.