Big and Hidden Talent on display at Winton today

By Jonny Turner

Hidden Talent is set to stop living up to her name at Winton on Friday.

The classy trotter has been hidden away in recent months with trainer Nathan Williamson opting to give his mare a quiet autumn.

Now that spring has arrived and so have some big race goals for Hidden Talent.

Though the Group One Dominion is over two months away, punters shouldn’t expect the mare to race like a horse that is going to take a few runs to come to hand.

“She is pretty naturally fit and she comes to hand pretty quickly,” Williamson said.

“She is not the type to take a heap of racing to get to her peak, so she is definitely forward enough to win.”

Oliver Kite has been charged with handling Hidden Talent in her return.

The pair face a 20m handicap which has proven to be a tough mark in 2400m races at Winton recently.

But with the kind of exceptional speed Hidden Talent has, she may be able to finish over the top of her rivals anyway.

“She is best driven for one run that way and I would think Ollie would most likely choose to drive her that way,” Williamson said.

“If they are really going slow, he has the option to go around them, I am sure he would.”

“But I will be leaving that all up to him.”

“She is pretty classy, so you think that either way she is going to be hard to beat.”

Williamson starts one more stable runner at Winton on Friday in Rise Up N Dance.

The trainer drives the three-year-old himself and though they start from the outside of the front line, Williamson still thinks his horse will be hard to beat.

“He has come up nice, he is a really big horse that we have had to wait on him.”

“He has got some of the family ability and even from a wide draw I think he will be hard to beat.”

Black Pat looks one of Williamson’s best outside drives.

The two-year-old steps out in race 1 on the back of a tidy debut at Wyndham.

“She went a nice race on debut, she does look green and you’d think she would have come on a lot from that first run.”

Velocity Jet looks another decent hope for Williamson in race 3.

“A lot will depend on happens when the gate leaves with him.”

“He hasn’t had a mobile start, but if he is in the mood to get off the gate he would be a chance.”

“He has won both his races in front he is the sort of horse that will race the others when they come up to him.”

“Krackaling looks the one to beat but he could be half the quinella if he puts his best foot forward.”

Williamson also combines with Glenkenick, who looks a top-four hope in race 4, as well as Livy Desma who looks a rough hope in race 6.