The Tamworth trainer has nominated Navajo Chief for next Tuesday’s $20,000 Benchmark 70 Handicap (1000m) at Tamworth, where the six-year-old chestnut gelding son of Zizou is one of 11 entrants.

“He’ll probably run at Tamworth,” Craig Martin said.

“He ran a real good race in the John Clift Memorial at Tamworth (on Tamworth Cup day) – was unlucky and should have finished a lot closer (than sixth).”

Martin will also run Present Sense in Friday’s $80,000 Pryde’s EasiFeed Noel Leckie Country Cup Benchmark 85 Handicap (1400m) at Scone.

The six-year-old gelding son of Bryanbo’s Gift, a birthday present for Martin’s son Liam, has drawn wide in gate 13 with Josh Oliver to ride.

Present Sense will carry 57kg in a race also including Tamworth Cup runner-up After All That (Rod Northam) but hasn’t raced since finishing sixth to Exilia Miss in the April 18 Guyra Cup over 1400m.

He was beaten just over two lengths that day and was a similar story to many of his recent near misses and close things in country cups.

That stretches back to last year when he was second in the Curlewis Cup at Gunnedah, second in the Maclean Cup at Grafton, third in the Narromine Cup and third in the Gunnedah Cup to Avroson before winning the Barraba Cup.

However, those near misses continued again with a third in the Kempsey Cup, third in the Coonabarabran Cup, fifth in the Walcha Cup and sixth in the Quirindi Cup.

Martin spelled him after being beaten by just over a length in the Quirindi Cup and he returned from that six week break to run well in the Guyra Cup.

He has trialled well, fourth to Crooked Blaze over 900m at Tamworth last week, and is ready to run another big race, although the trainer said it “could be a bit short for him”.

“He’s drawn a little wide, too,” he said.

“He could go forward because he has raced up on the speed when he’s fresh. Not that we’ve wanted him to but because he does.

“He’s been a very consistent horse for us, won five races.”

While he’s won just the five he’s almost clocked up $100,000 in prizemoney ($97,930) and he could also be headed north to Queensland.

The Martins are thinking about a northern Cups tour to Mackay and Townsville.

That’s an option,” Martin said.

“If we don’t go there we might go to the mid-weekers in Sydney.”