What a story it would be if Patrick Payne claimed Saturday's $500,000 Sportsbet Ballarat Cup.
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The Plumpton trainer has grown up as part of Australian racing royalty in arguably Ballarat's most famous sporting family.
He has ridden a Cox Plate winner, his youngest sister Michelle is a Melbourne Cup-winning jockey and that is just scratching the surface of many highs for a family which has also suffered the worst of tragedies.
There has been no shortage of special moments for the Paynes on their home track at Dowling Forest.
There's been a Payne family tribute day on which several of the eight siblings to embark of careers as jockeys rode against each other in an invtation event.
Michelle won on debut as a jockey there and Patrick won a debut as a jumps jockey.
One goal that has eluded the family though is success in the Ballarat Cup.
They have come close. The patriarch, Paddy senior as a trainer, almost pulled off a massive boil over when mudlark Bowl Along finished second on a heavy10 track 2007. Michelle rode Banana Man to third in 2008, then Patrick saddled up Double You Tee for a close second two years ago.
Patrick Payne has two runners on Saturday in his bid to break the ice - Defibrillator and Double You Tee, having his third consecutive start in the Cup.
THE Payne family does have close link to a Ballarat Cup winner.
Kerrin McEvoy, who is married to Cathy Payne, won on Itstheone for mark Kavanagh in 2009.
Just one jockey engaged in the Cup has already won the race. Damien Oliver, who has the ride on top weight Yonker, scored on The Offer in 2013
Ballarat's John Allen was to have attempted his third win after successes Kiwia in 2018 and 2019, but his ride Quantum Mechanics has been scratched.
Waller has reduced his Cup numbers to two. Skyman will join Yonkers, but Only Words has been scratched.
BALLARAT CUP jockeys Daniel Moor and Damien Thornton have interesting ties to Ballarat.
Moor's grandfather, the late Tom Kelly, lived and trained in Ballarat, while Thornton was born while his father Glenn was training in Ballarat.
TRAINERS Archie Alexander and Chris Waller are each trying for second Ballarat Cups.
Waller won with Junoob in 2015 and Alexander with Kiwia in 2019 after taking over the training of the stayer 2018 Cup winner from Darren Weir.
