THINGS are warming up, both literally and metaphorically, in Australia leading into the big events of the Spring such as the Everest Stakes at Randwick on October 17th and the Melbourne Cup at Flemington on November 3rd.

A slot in the former has reportedly been secured for Behemoth, a five-year-old who followed up his win in the Group 1 Memsie Stakes at Caulfield in August with victory under top-weight in the Sir Rupert Clarke Handicap at the same track last weekend.