Friday night’s main event: In the blue corner, Tyson, in the red corner, Sugar Ray

Co-trainer Ray Green finds it hard to split last week’s winners Sugar Ray Lincoln and Tyson who clash at Auckland on Friday night.

“There’s not much between the two and if they repeat their runs, they’ll be right in it again,” said Green who trains the Lincoln Farms’ three-year-olds with Nathan Delany.

Bookmakers favour the rejuvenated Sugar Ray Lincoln ($3.10, $1.35) over tough-as-teak Tyson ($4.60, $1.65), Copy That’s little brother finally living up his early hype.

“He’s finally getting his act together - he’s gone three good races in a row - and seemingly turned the corner.

“We’ve had a lot of (vet) work done on him, his feet in particular, and it’s paid off.”

Green was chuffed to see Sugar Ray stave off all challengers last week, leading for the last 1500 metres and scoring by a neck over Turn O The Tide.

That race had an R50 ceiling but Sugar Ray meets pacers rated up to R59 this week including Arna Donnelly’s capable trio of Le Major (R58), Joe’s Rock ($59) and Beta Prepare (R56).

If the race develops into a slug-fest, Green says Tyson will really come into his own, with the Art Major colt always up for a fight, no matter where he draws or gets to in the running.

“He’s trained on well and is in good shape.”

Angelic Copy, unlucky last week and boasted an unbeaten hat-trick earlier in the year. PHOTO: Megan Liefting/Race Images.Fillies at long odds

Lincoln Farms has three in each of the Sires’ Stakes two-year-old heats, Rivergirl Bella, Lincoln Linda and Angelic Copy in the fillies’ event and Prince Lincoln, Lincoln Lover and Johnny Lincoln in the colts’ and geldings’ race.

Angelic Copy ($21, $4.50) looks best placed of the fillies, drawn two on the second row and Green says she needs only a half decent trip to feature.

“She got held up a little bit in the straight at a crucial time last week and that was that.”

Driver Harrison Orange had no escape route when he tried to move out in the run home and had to duck back down, her effort for 10th much better than it seemed.

“She’s trained on well and hopefully we might see a bit more of what she can do this time.”

Rivergirl Bella ($71, $10) ran an improver’s seventh last week, working home strongly on the markers, and credited with the fifth fastest closing 400 metres.

Drawn seven on Friday night, Green says she’ll need everything to go her way.

“But she’s got a bit of speed. She’s getting there. She wasn’t very strong before and wasn’t tracking too well, but she’s driving right now.”

Lincoln Linda ($41, $7) on the other hand is still proving a very difficult drive for Maurice McKendry, misbehaving in the score-up last week, laying in and hitting track markers near the 1200 and weakening from the 900 to finish nearly 40 lengths behind the second last horse.

“She’s had a few issues, mostly mental ones, and is still a bit of a handful. It wasn’t very pretty last week but we’re slowly getting her under control.”

Green says drawing the outside of the gate might actually help Lincoln Linda on Friday night.

Lincoln Lover, a $61 shot on Friday night but a real favourite with driver Peter Ferguson. PHOTO: Trish Dunell.Lover worth following

The three boys face a duanting task in the following event but, if driver Peter Ferguson’s report is anything to go by, Lincoln Lover ($61, $10) is worth following.

The little colt opened at $101 last week and completely out-ran the odds by finishing an unlucky sixth, just 3.2 lengths behind impressive winner Special Occasion.

Lincoln Lover got a little rough in his gait early when Ferguson tried to kick up from the second line and snare the trial, eventually giving way to eventual runner-up Utah Blaze.

“Ferg reckoned if he’d been able to hold up in the trail he would have won. He was very bullish about how he’d gone.”

Lincoln Lover ran on strongly from three back on the markers, finishing right in behind the placegetters.

The colt has a tougher task from six on Friday night but Green says “he can do a bit of work.

“He’s an honest little guy who saves his best for when the money’s up on racenight.”

Prince Lincoln ($19, $4.50) draws better in three, from where he can improve on his excellent fifth last week.

“He also got cheated for a run,” Green said. “It’s hard to know where he’d have finished without that.”

Johnny Lincoln ($26, $5.50) will need to improve his racing manners if he is to feature, based on his antics last week when he got really fired up and gave McKendry a torrid time.

McKendry eventually let the colt go, four wide down the back straight, but he was all done turning for home and stopped to last.

“Yes, he got a bit keen but he should be a lot better this time. He’s still learning and he’s a slow learner.

“When he does things correctly he’s a pretty nice horse. Hopefully he can get a suck into it from the second row draw.”