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Bolton, the horse that almost denied Victorian trainer Neil Dyer a Darwin Cup win in 2012, has joined his team for an assault on this year’s $200,000 race.

Dyer, who arrived in the Top End last week for his eighth successive tilt at the Darwin Cup carnival, will prepare the in-form veteran Bolton on behalf of his Queensland owner-trainer Steve Royes for the $200,000 feature race on August 3.

Dyer, who has been taking a team to the Northern Territory every winter since 2007, won successive Darwin Cups in 2011 and 2012 with the now retired Hawks Bay.

Hawks Bay won his first Darwin Cup in 2011 by four lengths but in 2012 he had only a nose to spare over Bolton,

While Hawks Bay is now enjoying retirement the rising nine-year-old Bolton is still going strong, winning his second successive Mt Isa Cup for Royes on June 6.

Bolton is now in Darwin under Dyer’s care after Royes asked the Victorian to prepare the Zabeel gelding for the Darwin Cup (2000m)..

Bolton has eight wins from 49 starts and almost $300,000 in prize money, arrived last week after racing in the McKinlay Cup on June 20.

Dyer also has Proverb and Royal Request set for the Darwin Cup, a race that has become his annual obsession.

“I would love to win another Darwin Cup before I am finished,” Dyer said. “I have two wins and have run second three times.

“I will be tickled pink to see Bolton run in the Cup again, this time for me.”

Mt Isa-based Royes has made regular Northern Territory raids with Bolton this year for placings in the Alice Springs Cup and Tennant Creek Cup before his MT Isa Cup win.

“Bolton has never won a race in the Northern Territory. It’S my job to change that,” Dyer said.

Royal Request won last year’s NT Derby and ran second in the Darwin Guineas, form that wil stand him good stead for the Darwin Cup this year as a four-year-old.

“He needs to take the next step but I always thought he will,” Dyer said.

“I thought the way he raced last year he might develop into a Darwin Cup horse.”

Proverb was previously a Darley-owned Group winner who had 15 months off before joining the Dyer team early this year after a throat operation.

He was having his third start for Dyer when he made his Darwin debut at Fannie Bay last Saturday, finishing fifth over 1300m at his first outing since March.