12 months to the weekend on from running fourth in the world's oldest classic, the St Leger at Doncaster, Interpretation went to Flemington looking to sure up his place among those labelled 'Cups Contenders' but he came up short, travelling well throughout and moving strongly into the race only to flatten out late in a rare race beyond 2000m that didn't just turn into a test of late speed.
Now, 12 months to the weekend on from running fourth at the world's greatest race meeting, the Arc meeting at Longchamp, Interpretation reaches a fork in the road. Is he a Geelong Cup horse or a Melbourne Cup horse? The Bart Cummings will decide. His profile overseas hints at it being the latter and now, for the first time in Australia, we see him with a base.
A searching hit out and another three weeks for the top staying stable in the land to turn up the heat and bring Interpretation to the boil makes it easy to envisage a return to his European peaks now. Peaks that are right up at the level that it has taken to win the Bart Cummings in recent times and high enough to stretch the sinews of the 14-strong field that lines up to try and stop him.
Early prices make him about a one in five chance of realising that peak and that peak being good enough to win him the race. The positives are strong enough to back him to be better equipped and better prepared than that. His preparers, Maher and Eustace, have hit the mark in the race in the last two years with Persan and Grand Promenade - horses with different profiles but very similar ratings to Interpretation - and they can be backed to hit the target again.
Interpretation isn't the only one from the yard going to Flemington with his place among the spring's stars somewhat on the line. Gold Trip heads betting for the Turnbull playing the role of 'the weight horse' have given chunks of it all around when beaten in the Naturalism last time.
He also has an Arc angle on Arc weekend, having run fourth in the great race in 2020, and he hasn't done much wrong since. He hasn't won since either of course and in Duais he does meet one that is as good as him along with a string of horses not quite so good but good enough to mean that he won't get away without fronting right up.
Those that choose to back the yard to hit the mark, as the Melbourne Mail minions are with Interpretation, seem reasonable in doing so but he is passed over for these purposes.
Our each way play comes up in the second race on the card where another highly-regarded import returns from a break at the top of betting.
That horse is Visinari and his form around Tuvalu, along with a string of good times over the winter, stamp him as the right favourite.
Prices $8.00 and up about a dry-track Character are big enough to draw out a bet though as he is seen as the biggest danger to Visinari and a credible threat at that.
Heavy losses have come on heavy ground. 15, 22 and 17 lengths evidence enough that he hates it. He has won three of his past four away from heavy ground and two of those came at Group Two level with ratings of 108. That mark has him hot on the heels of Visinari which is hopefully where he is poised when they swing home on the good ground at Flemington on Saturday.
THE MELBOURNE MAIL
Bet Of The Day: Race 6 #10 Interpretation @ $4.50
Each Way Play: Race 2 #2 Character @ $8.50
