Dual Grade 1-winner French Navy has been backed from 40-1 to 25-1 for Saturday’s Sun Met following Sean Tarry’s comments about the horse at last Thursday’s draw ceremony.

French Navy (Nkosi Hlophe)

The champion trainer said: “People in this game have short memories but just look at his last Grade 1 race in Jo’burg. He has come along nicely and I was very happy with his run in the Queen’s Plate. I think he is a value bet for a place.”

The place odds have also shrunk to as little as 3-1 with Betting World. The five-year-old was beaten six lengths when eighth in the Queen’s Plate but rider Weichong Marwing is convinced that he has come on since. The Turffontein Grade 1 that Tarry was referring to is the Champions Challenge when French Navy was a two-length second to Legal Eagle and he is now 2kg better with the favourite.

Tarry believes that the top end of the market reflects the strength of the opposition to Legal Eagle pretty accurately – “I think they have probably got the betting right. I have a lot of respect for those in single figures. Whisky Baron has come along the soft route but he has been very impressive and he is certainly worth respecting.”

Tarry, who won the 2005 Met with 50-1 chance Alastor, has deliberately saved the talented Cloth Of Cloud for the $500 000 CTS Sprint and he was pleased with the way last season’s SA Nursery winner went with Carry On Alice in a spin on the course last week.

Cloth Of Cloud is 7-2 second favourite with World Sports Betting which has installed Sergeant Hardy as 18-10 favourite. It has Carry On Alice heading the Betting World Cape Flying Championship market at 22-10 with stable companion Trip To Heaven second favourite at 33-10.

Silver Mountain is 22-10 favourite for the Klawervlei Majorca despite her terrible draw (20 out of 20) with the Bass-Robinson second string Nightingale (drawn almost as badly at 16) on 11-2. Star Express (drawn seven) is 9-2 second favourite.

Horizon is hot favourite for the Investec Cape Derby at 11-10 with Frankie Dettori’s mount Edict Of Nantes next best on 7-2 and Table Bay a generous-looking 4-1. Anton Marcus’s mount is officially rated 3.5kg better than anything else in the field.

The bookies are offering huge prices on some of Dettori’s other mounts – 25-1 Vortex Star(Kuda Sprint) and Seventh Plain (Cape Flying), and 50-1 French Legend in the CTS Sprint.

By Michael Clower