Cruz Bromac’s path to the Pryde’s EasiFeed Victoria Cup and New Zealand Trotting Cup should become clear within the next 24 hours.

Trainer Amanda Grieve will consider Saturday’s Minuteman Free For All field and then decide whether the brilliant, versatile eight-year-old pacer targets the middle distance pace at Tabcorp Park Melton or waits a further week before unleashing the million-dollar pacer.

“We will just see how many are there, who’s there and how hard it will be for him,” she said.

At present, both Ride High and Lochinvar Art have been nominated for the $30,000 headliner.

Should they bypass this Saturday night, Grieve said the camp would likely run Cruz Bromac first up in the $50,000 TAB Smoken Up Sprint on October 3 then chase another Group 1 triumph in the October 10 Victoria Cup.

“He is on the same prep as last year, when he ran at Kilmore first up (September 26) and was then third in the Victoria Cup,” she said.

“He seems really good and in a similar space to last year. He’s about as good as we can have him without racing.”

Owner Danny Zavitsanos' typically optimistic about the path ahead for Cruz Bromac, which includes a longer term trip back across the Tasman to defend his New Zealand Trotting Cup.

“Going by all reports he is racing really good,” Zavitsanos said. “He normally races well fresh, but if he does race this week it’s not about breaking records, but preparing for the Victoria Cup and then defending the New Zealand Cup back over there.”

The prolific owner is hopeful of having two representatives in the Victoria Cup, with Code Black crashing the line to finish third behind Hurricane Harley and Lochinvar Art in his return to racing at Bendigo on Saturday night.

“(Emma Stewart's camp) was rapt,” he said. “The last half was better than the winners and he was five-deep at the turn.

“If he happens to draw a nice marble he can pinch one, he’s a real nice racehorse. We are aiming for a Victoria Cup start, you have to be realistic and it probably depends on what Luke (McCarthy) brings down (from New South Wales).

“His next run will be the (Smoken Up) Sprint, we will see how he goes.”

Meanwhile, Grieve is expecting to welcome Our Princess Tiffany into the camp in the near future.

The mare races for Mark Purdon and Natalie Rasmussen on Friday in the Franklin Long Roofing 2020 Spring Cup at Alexandra Park, where she will take on the likes of Copy That, Triple Eight and Victoria-bound Another Masterpiece.

Grieve said it was unlikely Our Princess Tiffany would arrive in time to be considered for the Victoria Cup, with the mare to be geared at the Elizabeth Clarke Mares Triple Crown, which takes in the Benstud Make Mine Cullen (October 17), Angelique Club Pace (October 23) and Benstud Queen Of The Pacific (October 31).

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