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Trainer Michael Freedman faces a fairly quiet weekend ahead of his big Saturday week rendezvous in Dubai when his stable star Better Be The One races in the Group 1 Al Quoz Sprint, but still has enough firepower to keep his stable firing at home.

The Australian, who currently heads the Singapore trainer's premiership on 22 winners, said the small team of two and five runners on Friday night and Sunday respectively was due to the cyclical nature of turning out racehorses, but was of course still looking forward to their runs, especially that of promising three-year-old Chateauneuf Dupape on Friday night and former champion juvenile Mr Big on Sunday.

Chateauneuf Dupape will be at his fourth run following two wins and one second at Kranji. Placed at Group level in New Zealand, the son of Darci Brahma has certainly lived up to his top billing but has not been as dominant as some other wards from Freedman's stellar team like Super Easy, Masthead or Maranello.

Owned by one of Freedman's most loyal supporters, John O'Neil, Chateauneuf Dupape, who is named after O'Neil's favourite French wine, scored his first win (1100m) by a neck and the second by three parts of a length – both on Polytrack. At his only race (1200m) on grass, he finished a head second to Riezo.

Two changes have been brought into the mix – gear (winkers on) and jockey (Stephen Baster) with only the decision to add the winkers being by design.

“Joao (Moreira) who rode him at all three starts, is suspended and can't ride him on Friday, but I had a chat with him after his last start and he told me that without the blinkers, he was still wayward midrace,” said Freedman.

“The blinkers have come on and off, and I guess the winkers were halfway between blinkers and no blinkers. We'll see how he goes.”

Freedman said the stronger opposition in the $75,000 Progress race over 1100m on Polytrack will give him a guide how good his charge really is.

“It's a nice race for him as the conditions get him well in at the weights (52.5kg) but it is still his stiffest test since he has been here,” said Freedman.

“I obviously have plenty of respect for El Milagro and Bruce Marsh's filly (Californian Girl). The race has a bit of depth and it should give me a good indication where he is at.

“I've always been inclined to test him a bit further. I think he is going more like a horse who would appreciate 1400m and even up to a mile.”

Freedman is also keen to see how Mr Big will measure up in Sunday's $125,000 Open race over 1100m on Polytrack, especially after he had to pull him out of the Group 3 Merlion Trophy last Sunday.

“I wasn't very happy with Mr Big going into Sunday's race. He was not 100 per cent after his previous run which was a pretty hard run,” said Freedman in reference to the Elusive Quality gelding's third place to Kaiser in an Open Benchmark 89 race over 1000m.

“So, I thought the extra week might suit him better, but unfortunately he has drawn a bad gate again. I think statistics will show he has drawn wide in at least six or seven of his races.

“But what do we do? We have to make do with the cards we are dealt.”

Freedman saddles a second runner in Dictator (Alan Munro) in the race which also sees the return of handy New Zealand sprinter Coup Align, who has not raced since scoring his maiden Kranji win for Mark Walker last October.

Freedman leaves for Dubai on Tuesday night, which will enable him to see his two-year-olds trial at Kranji in the morning.

“I didn't want to miss the barrier trials on Tuesday morning,” said Freedman. “I will then be there (Dubai) to give Better Be The One one last gallop on Wednesday morning.”

With jockey Vlad Duric having returned to Australia and decided not to ride Better Be The One, Freedman did not take long to find a replacement.

“Kieren Fallon's agent rang me and told me Kieren was not committed to any ride in the Al Quoz Sprint,” said Freedman on how he secured the top-class Irish jockey. “He is back in Dubai early next week and should be able to get on Better Be The One for his first piece of work then.

“There is a bit of a connection with Kieren as he won on California Dane for my brother Lee in a Group 2 race (Schweppes Stakes) at Moonee Valley in 2006, but he knocked over a few runners in the process and copped a ban.

“That was meant to be just a warm-up race before his main mission – ride Yeats in the Melbourne Cup. In the end, the suspension ended just on the day before the Melbourne Cup and he was able to ride Yeats.”