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By Ray Hickson

When you’ve danced with the world’s best sprinter and prevailed you don’t fear too many challengers and that’s the attitude jockey Nash Rawiller is taking as Eduardo kicks off his TAB Everest campaign at Randwick on Saturday.

Jockey Nash Rawiller (Pic: Steve Hart)

So he’s confident the gutsy nine-year-old can see off his rivals, which don't include Nature Strip, in the Group 3 $500,000 Southern Cross Group Concorde Stakes (1000m) and make the perfect start for what will be his third attempt at Australia’s richest race.

On paper it appears Eduardo could be in for a speed contest early in the Concorde with the flying Malkovich engaged, and drawn directly to his inside, but that’s of no concern to the master tactician.

“He’s been in battles with the best of them and come out on top,’’ Rawiller said.

“He’s not the sort of horse you let other horses scare you off or anything. He will just do his job up on the speed and he’ll be going a lot easier than the one outside of him or inside him.

“Nature Strip and my bloke have been top of the food chain for a few years now but you can see a changing of the guard coming. There’s some new blood on the block.

“At the moment he’s at the top of his game so we just have to keep him there."

Rawiller is referring to the likes of Mazu, who Eduardo is due to meet in the Group 2 $1m The Shorts (1100m) in two weeks and is embarking on the Everest path for the first time.

That race is also likely to contain defending Everest champ Nature Strip, 2020 hero Classique Legend, Lost And Running and another aspiring Everest hopeful in Overpass.

The Joe Pride-trained sprinter has trialled twice leading into the Concorde and he was touched out by Mark Newnham’s ex-Hong Kong galloper Joyful Fortune in the latest over 742m.

That doesn’t particularly bother Rawiller, or Pride for that matter, and it's interesting to note that on the rare occasions the horse is beaten in a trial it's been the second trial in the preparation.

“It had me scratching my head a bit then I realised the other horse holds a record down the straight at Sha Tin so I don’t think that’s too much to worry about,’’ Rawiller said.

“We weren’t out there to run any time, just let him go through the motions.

“I’m really looking forward to him this time in. He’s been giving a great feel in both his trials and he always runs super first-up as we know."

Eduardo runs in the Yulong Investments slot in the $15 million sprint classic and was $11 in TAB’s all-in market, and $2.15 in the Concorde, on Wednesday.

Pride said the decision to skip the Brisbane winter this year is the reason Eduardo is making an appearance in the Concorde and he is set to tackle the TAB Everest third-up.

Eduardo runs second in a trial at Randwick on August 19

The gelding has started twice over the Randwick 1000m and downed Nature Strip on both occasions, in the past two editions of the Challenge Stakes.

“We started off in the Shorts last year off a shorter break so we’re kicking him off earlier,’’ Pride said.

“He’s a very good horse fresh and very good over the short trips.

“It’s all going to plan which is great. He’s not a strong trialler, it’s just what I expected of him. The horse looks a million dollars and can’t wait to get him to the races.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday's Randwick meeting