The five-year-old has 23 wins from 24 starts, including 12 at Group 1 level, but will have to do something she has never done before: race twice on the same night to win and collect a new $500,000 bonus, along with the $142,500 first prize.
That’s the Great Southern Star’s X-factor with qualifying heats at 6.30pm (race two) and 7.01pm (race three) before the $250,000 Group 1 final at 9.33pm (race eight).
“It’s the great unknown, there’s no doubt about it,” Lee said.
“She handles racing well and usually gets through a run without it taking too much out of her, but this is something completely different.
“I’m glad this isn’t the first time we’ve cracked the Great Southern Star.
“It’s her first time, but we’ve had experiences with Keayang Chucky and Keayang Ignite before and I can assure you we learned a lot from them.
“We think it helped the way we prepare her for the night and what we do with her in the three hours between the heat and the final.
“We are certainly pleased that she won the three (qualifying) races she needed (for the bonus) last week before Kilmore, which meant we were able to give her two weeks between runs.”
Keayang Zahara has landed in the stronger of the two Great Southern Star heats (race two), but it seems likely he will push to the front from gate five and find the lead from Rockinwithattitude (gate four).
Ironically, she is also helped by star stablemate Jilliby Ballerini, who is the second seed in the Great Southern Star, coming out of the draw and coming from the second row (gate 10) in heat one.
Stewards removed Jilliby Ballerini from the draw for causing a false start at the first attempt before winning the Group 1 Kilmore Trotters’ Cup last Saturday evening.
“We are taking her to the Terang trials tonight (Wednesday) and she is doing everything there and in her (Great Southern Star) heat she will be back in the draw for the final,” Lee said.
The trotting ranks of the Lee Clan are so astonishingly deep; they also have one of the favorites, Jilliby Dreamlover, in the second Great Southern Star heat.
“She’s come so far in this campaign,” Lee said. “She’s so fast (in the beginning), I think there’s a good chance she’ll find the lead and have a huge race from there.”
Lee’s brother, Jason, who drives Keayang Zahara, said the night was one of the most important in the stable’s history.
“Yes, because despite all the nice trotters we have had and have now, we haven’t won any of the really big races like the Southern Star or Inter Dominion,” he said.
“You look at people like Andy and Kate Gath who have won five Great Southern Stars and want to be part of that.”
Victory in the Great Southern Star moves Keayang Zahara into equal second place on the all-time Group 1 list for trotters with 13 wins with Take A Moment. The great Lyell Creek stands alone with the record of 15 wins.
Through Adam Hamiltonfor Harness Racing Victoria
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