Flemington racecourse, venue for Saturday's Group One Lightning Stakes in Melbourne, has been deluged with rain in the past 24 hours, an unseasonal occurrence which unfortunately spells bad news for Hong Kong's representative Cape Of Good Hope.
February is normally Melbourne's driest month of the year and local racing men cannot recall the last time a Lightning Stakes was decided on a rain-affected track. But that's how it will be on Saturday, with 37mm of rain falling to 9 am yesterday and further rain continuing to tumble down throughout the day.
Flemington racecourse manager Terry Watson said the track would now be rated heavy, but pointed out that the famous course did drain well and he was therefore hopeful of an early upgrade for Saturday.
The Melbourne forecast, issued yesterday, was for 'rain at times' today, 'rain easing' tomorrow and 'a few showers clearing' with a top temperature of 22 degrees on Saturday.
Trainer David Oughton arrived in Melbourne on Tuesday and said yesterday that the weather was definitely not in the Cape's favour as he strived to crack a win in a rare Silent Witness-free race.
'He's essentially a top-of-the-ground horse - he's better on the dry,' Oughton said. 'However, he did strike a wet track in Japan last October and still ran well, so we'll continue on and hope for the best.'
