Gareth Hall breaks down the weekend's racing.

It was a Saturday that was going to tell us a lot for the rest of the spring. Well, it was meant to anyway.

I will get to the Makybe Diva in just a minute.

Robbie Griffiths has a beauty in Legacy Bound, so does Johnny McArdle in My Gladiola. The Coolmore - the famous sprint for the three-year olds-down the straight on day 1 of the Flemington Cup carnival now firmly in their sights.

Vinrock got his Caulfield Guinea’s campaign back on track in the Exford Plate. He’s now set to go to the Golden Rose in Sydney.

That Group 1 will be the best guide to the Guineas, with the top three in the market all heading that way. Vinrock to be joined by Autumn Boy who was mighty in defeat in the Ming Dynasty and Nepotism who got too far back in a red hot ‘Run To The Rose' which was won in spectacular fashion by Tempted.

There’s a strong argument to say Tempted was probably the best performed two-year-old last season, but she proved she’s the yardstick this season with a devastating first-up performance for her new trainer Ciaron Maher.

Now the big question is will Maher and Godolphin be Tempted to head to an Everest and take on the world champ Ka Ying Rising? Or will that be too much for a three-year-old filly this season?

As good as Tempted was Autumn Glow was the horse I would like to own out of that Rosehill meeting.

She looks something special and the Epsom looks her race. She’s now $1.80 for the famous mile handicap.

If Knights Choice can win a Melbourne Cup, surely Revelare can.

Talking about the Cup, Joseph O’Briens star stayer Al Riffa is now the $6 favourite (on Sportsbet) for the great race after destroying his rivals in the Irish St Leger.

If Joseph is right he will be the first horse to carry 59kg and win a cup since Rising Fast in 1954.

The Cup weights are released Tuesday.

It’s still unlikely the English St Leger winner Scandinavian heads to the Cup but Aidan O’Brien and the Coolmoore lads haven’t completely shut the door. If he does come he will replace Al Riffa as the horse to beat.

The story of the day was the running of the Group 1 Makybe Diva Stakes.

There is a couple of ways that you can look at this.

First of all, if you didn’t tip or back Mr Brightside then you’re kicking yourself like me because you’ve overlooked the obvious.

He was the likely leader with no speed, his record in the race is exceptional, his record at the trip, his first-up effort to finish second in a fast run Memsie was excellent, he’s been trained to peak at a mile this prep, while his opposition are on a Cox Plate and some a Melbourne Cup path and were all first or second-up.

And it makes more sense when you read Chris Waller’s quotes on racing.com’s website after the race.

"They went awesome, simple as that," Waller said.

"They couldn't have run any better.

"I haven't seen the sectionals but that's how it looked. Mr Brightside is a great horse and Craig (Williams) took the initiative in leading.

"You couldn't have expected my two to lead - I think they were ridden brilliantly - and they put on a bloody good show and that's what people want to see. They are both stars. Aeliana is next year's Via Sistina."

"I would have preferred a race like that than a tearaway leader.

"For us getting to our grand final, we are exactly on target. We don't need to change anything or adjust anything.

"The pressure of a 2000-metre race will suit both of them. We got beat but we came away knowing that we're heading in the right direction for their grand finals."

Tony Gollan said something similar if you read the stewards report regarding Antino.

And it's also hard to blame the jockeys because the only people they need to please is the connections they’re riding for.

And the stewards of course who asked the questions to (James) McDonald and (Blake) Shinn and were satisfied with their explanations.

This what Blake Shinn had to say yesterday on Racing.com.

“I had confidence in Antino’s turn of foot, like he sat last in the Champions Mile and ran home in about 33 seconds,” Shinn told Racing.com.

“He’s only second-up and I felt if I gave him a gut-busting run second-up, he probably wasn’t quite fit enough to run him like a Toorak Handicap or a Doomben Cup when he was really rock-hard fit.

“That was in the back of my mind.”

So, you can understand they’re thinking the beaten brigade. They don’t want to cook their horse second-up when they have their Grand Final in two starts time - the WS Cox Plate.

The second way you can look at it is this - the sport can’t accept a farcical run race like that in any class let alone a Group 1 at Flemington at the start of the spring.

You can’t have the sport’s best athletes going 30 lengths below standard to the 800m in a Group 1 mile.

Group 1 races are meant to be the pinnacle of the sport. They shouldn’t be treated like barrier trials.

And the way that race was run it was embarrassment and disrespectful to the great game.

J-Mac had a rare shocker, even his wonderful wife Katelyn said that on the Channel 7 coverage. It was a brain fade by the champ to decide to follow the outsider of the field.

And Blake Shinn, he took off in a Memsie when they were flying but decided to do nothing when they were walking in a Makybe Diva.

Imagine watching your favourite sport on a big stage and the athletes delivered that.

We are in the entertainment business and that was far from entertaining and I guess it makes you appreciate Pride of Jenni a little more because every time she went out we knew we were going to get a contest.

The race is now irrelevant from a form perspective because it was a 400 metre dash, we learnt nothing.

It proves we have too many Group 1s.

Group 1s should be for Grand Final races when everyone is having a fair dinkum crack.

If you lose a Group 1 it should mean something. It shouldn’t be just another race.

Now whatever your opinion is on this year’s Makybe Diva Stakes, it’s hard to argue Mr Brightside isn't a modern day great! He will be a Hall Of Famer and he’s a true warrior that makes this game so much better.

10 Group 1s! Should be 11 if you count the All Star Mile and he’s been placed in another 12 Group 1s.

He’s won off slow tempos, fast tempos, good, soft and heavy ground.

He’s a credit to the Hayes boys, Craig Williams who rides him to perfection and the team at Lindsey Park. Especially his strapper Will Evans and track work rider Ross Wishart.

He’s the most underrated champion the sport has seen, that keeps on answering his critics in the best way possible.

While he might get disrespected by the punters and tipsters from time to time, he showed once again if his opposition show him no respect like they did on Saturday, he will make even the very best look second rate.

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