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By Ray Hickson

Jockey Rory Hutchings says the task of carrying 62.5kg is well within Titanium Power’s ability as he looks to enhance an already imposing record on the in-form sprinter at Rosehill on Saturday.

Jockey Rory Hutchings (Pic: Bradley Photos).

And a key factor in the Joe Pride-trained galloper's favour is that Hutchings will weigh in at around 59kg himself so the bulk of Titanium Power’s weight will be natural.

“He’d be carrying about the same amount of dead weight as most of the opposition would,’’ Hutchings said.

“The 62.5kg is hard for any horse but it’s a similar field to the one he beat the other day and if any horse is going to carry it he will, he’s very strong.”

Hutchings will only have the one ride at Rosehill so he can have the luxury of being able to be that bit heavier than normal but, as he closes in on 600 career winners, he says it’s important to get the job done to attract more opportunities in town.

He can speak with authority about Titanium Power given he’s been on board in 11 of the four-year-old’s 19 starts for all six wins (four on soft ground) and two placings. He’s won more races on the four-year-old than any other horse.

He’ll be the first to admit that his first impressions about Titanium Power have proven to be off the mark and has been more than happy to revise his assessment.

“I rode him in a couple of trials before he raced. I won on him at his first start at Hawkesbury, it was quite a surprise because he’d had seven trials before he went to the races,’’ he said.

“If you’d asked me when I won those first couple of provincial races on him if he was a Saturday horse I’d have laughed.

“But he took the step to midweek grade and he was able to get that win on a Saturday at the end of last prep. And the older he’s got the better he has become. He’s established himself as a genuine Saturday horse.

“Joe is very good with getting longevity out of geldings like him. I think he is only just getting warm and placed right there’s a decent race in him somewhere.”

Titanium Power, $5 with TAB on Wednesday, takes an unbeaten record over the Rosehill 1300m into the Schweppes Handicap after making it two from two with an all the way success in a similar event (Benchmark 78) on June 18.

He carried 60kg on that occasion and was able to take control of the race early, but the two-time Group 1 winning jockey says leading is not the be-all for the horse.

“I don’t think it’s important but it does help because the way he’s won those races he runs the opposition into the ground from the home turn,’’ he said.

Titanium Power wins at Rosehill on June 18

“The turn of foot he shows when I ask him to do that would suggest if he had to sit off speed it shouldn’t be too much of a concern.

“He’s the sort of horse that is so strong and willing you can press the button a little earlier than you would on other horses.

“He breaks the opposition’s heart because they have to chase a long way from home and he’s still in top gear running all the way to the line.”

Hutchings also noted that when winning two weeks ago Titanium Power had a tendency to want to roll back toward the fence in the straight, a sign he still has a bit to learn which he says suggests there’s still another level for when he steps up further in grade.

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