Al’s winning recipe: We’ll just leave Larry alone and let him do his own thing

With another good draw, Larry Lincoln can go back to back at Albion Park on Friday night.

“It looks a very winnable race again,” says trainer Al Barnes. “The field’s no harder than the one he beat last week.”

Larry Lincoln was confidently tipped by Barnes as a winner last Friday after brilliant track work during the week and he duly obliged, capitalising on a trailing trip with a telling late sprint.

Part of the reason for the form turnaround was also that Barnes instructed his son Hayden not to burn the horse early, but to let him find his feet.

Barnes also learned last week that Larry doesn’t like to be stressed late with the whip or even have his hood pulled. When that happened in the run home he jammed his tail and went from bolting to not wanting to run.

So this week Larry will be left to do his own thing - not only at the start but also at the finish.

With two Redcliffe level horses drawn inside him, you’d think it would be a given that Larry will cross them from three but Barnes says whether that happens will depend on how fast they leave the gate.

“He can go forward and try to lead but we don’t want to burn him early, we’ll just let him slide forward. He can get a little keen.”

Regardless of where he settles, Barnes says the Sweet Lou three-year-old, with his natural speed, will be hard to beat again over only 1660 metres.

Larry Lincoln races at 8.52pm NZ time at Albion Park on Friday night.