Cody Morgan looks to win fourth Country Championships qualifier in last five years

But Cody Morgan, who trains the four-year-old gelding, isn't paying heed to external noise as he prepares for this weekend's qualifying race in Tamworth.

"I haven't lost any sleep over [those figures], to be honest," Morgan said.

"That's their opinion. I hope they're right, but he's got to carry 59 kilos, which is very difficult to do, and he's got to run the 1,400 [metres] which he hasn't done previously.

"But I can see how he's favourite."

Instead, Morgan believes one of the other four horses he has listed in the race might be a strong outside chance.

Casino Lord is coming off two wins and two seconds in his last four starts, the most recent of which was a thunderous victory at Quirindi just last week.

Due to his results and how well he has recovered, Morgan has no qualms about giving the five-year-old gelding another run so soon.

"He's got a really good record at Tamworth. He's probably one of the outsiders, but I suspect he'll run really well," he said.

Acrophobic and Seguso round out the quartet set to run out of Morgan's stables on Sunday.

It is as strong a team as the Tamworth-based trainer has ever had run in the local Country Championships qualifier, which he has won three out of the last four years, but he knows there is some stiff competition to be met this weekend.

"I've got a lot of respect for the opposition in the Hunter Valley horses," Morgan said.

"The last few years I've gone into the race thinking I had the best horse, where this time they could have the wood on us. I'll need a lot of luck to beat them."

While many in town have cursed the hot weather in recent weeks, Morgan hopes it will translate to a dry, hard track on race day.

Those conditions, he believes, will suit the four horses he has running, particularly given their "faultless" preparation.

"That definitely plays in all four of my horses' favour," Morgan said.

"A dry track won't be an issue, and the home track's definitely an advantage when you're racing those Hunter Valley Horses. They're getting stronger and stronger."

Despite his respect for the other horses racing on Sunday, Morgan's history of winning in the Country Championships qualifier has instilled an innate confidence in his team and methods.

"A horse like Ezekeil's had a very similar work regime to Anethole 12 months ago," he said.

"You go back through your years of data that you have and see what work you did on what days, and try to replicate that."

With a total of 19 horses set to run across all races on Sunday, Morgan knows he is a good chance to pick up a few wins on the day.

"Hopefully it brings a lot of people to town on the weekend and hopefully we'll have a couple of winners on Sunday," he said.

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