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By Ray Hickson

If history is any guide to the outcome of the Group 3 $1 million Illawarra Mercury Gong (1600m) then jockey Josh Parr says he has every reason to be confident about in-form mare Lekvarte.

Josh Parr (Pic: Bradley Photos)

Four of the five winners of the Kembla Grange feature mile have been won by horses making their runs down the middle of the track and Parr hopes that’s how Saturday’s renewal plays out.

The Joe Pride-trained mare lacks a bit of tactical speed but Parr said she more than makes up for it when she's allowed to produce her turn of foot.

“There’s a lot of money and a big field and that generates pressure and speed, and that’d be indicative of why most years are won by horses off speed and down the middle,’’ Parr said.

“If that’s the set up again that’s how we get our chance, obviously a tactically run race wouldn’t suit us.

“She’s got that style of racing where she needs to be somewhat fresh, where she can display that good turn of foot she has.

“The fact she’s still only lightly raced this preparation gives her the opportunity to race at her best.”

Lekvarte, $8 with TAB on Wednesday, notched her third success at Group 3 level when she stormed home from last to win the Angst Stakes (1600m), accounting for subsequent winner Hinged, on Everest Day.

Parr, fresh from a Group 1 success in New Zealand last weekend, said he’s rapt with how she’s performed in her three runs this spring and there was plenty of merit in her last start sixth in the Group 1 Empire Rose at Flemington.

In that race she finished ahead of last week’s Group 1 winner Kimochi.

“I believe she went every bit as good at Flemington as she did at Randwick when she won the Angst,’’ Parr said.

“The turn of foot of those Group 1 mares was probably a little too sharp for her.

“She was accelerating really well and was strong through the line, but the gap they put on us from the 300m-200m was too significant to make up.”

Five of Lekvarte’s nine career wins have come at the 1600m, she’s only raced at Kembla Grange once for a third placing at just her third race start.

She’ll be Parr’s fourth ride in the Gong, with his best result to date a fourth on New Mandate last year.

Meanwhile, it wouldn’t surprise Parr if Fleet Commander handled a drop in distance in his stride in the PFD Food Services Handicap (2000m).

The blueblooded six-year-old, by Galileo out of superstar Atlantic Jewel, has won two of his past four starts, both for Parr, and wasn’t disgraced after leading and boxing on for fourth behind Kadavar over 2400m at Rosehill two weeks ago.

“There’s no tricks to him, what you see is what you get,” Parr said.

Lekvarte wins at Randwick on October 19

“He’s an on speed, one pacer, who likes to tough it out so he’s an easy horse to ride in that sense.

“Back to 2000m I don’t mind because he’s been to a trip where it’s got him hard and fit so a strong 2000m is definitely within his capabilities.”

Josh Parr on Disneck (race 2/10): “It was a really good run first-up. I thought at the 1000m he’d be in the back of the field and be doing his best work late. He caught me by surprise, he left the barriers faster than anything else in the race then we didn’t have the typical 1000m speed to race forward. We were caught in a tricky situation and the winner followed us throughout.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday’s Kembla Grange meeting