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Ironman New Zealand.. Will Brown win number 9?

Ironman New Zealand has a familiar air about it. Same place and time of year and the same man to beat. And without wanting to sleight Cam Brown, if the script runs true we will be seeing another walk down the finish line to collect title number 9. Brown is the Lord of Taupo and rightly so. The man who is near unbeatable on this course will front up again this Sunday needing only to stay upright on the bike to win.

If consistency is the name of the game then Brown has it in spades over this course. It therefore seems strange that his greatest strength is his kryptonite when he takes it off his native homeland. No one runs in Taupo like Cam Brown. Yet he has yet to unleash a big at Kona. Sure he has had some memorable races and swag of top 3 finishes but that golden marathon has so far eluded him. But this weekend is a far cry from Kona. The faithful at Taupo will once again see another masterful display by this great champion. Or will they?

Surely the Brown facade has to crumble. In waxing lyrical about a man who has indellibly stamped his name all over the event there are those who will try to usurp his position of dominance. The man at the head of the list is triathlon's version of a rock star in Terrenzo Bozzone. Bozzone, 25, has it all going on. He's the full package. Movie star looks and that devil may care attitude at press conferences has made him a favorite around the world.

But make no mistake that under the 'coolmanchu' exterior is an athlete who is hungry for that first win and talented enough to make Brown nervous. He is going to have to run the perfect marathon in order to do that but it is in him. Training away from the Chris McCormack hype may just be a good thing for him too. Last year he constantly talked about fatigue and freshen up could be the answer.The inside word on the race is that Brown will shadow Bozzone on the bike and then run away during the marathon.

The rest of the 13 professionals that make up the field will be a bit of a lottery. Expect a good race from Kieran Doe and Keegan Williams.

The women's event in 2009 saw Jo Lawn's reign at the top taken by the hard charging Gina Crawford. She too is back and will be the one to beat. Jo Lawn wants her title back and we should see a fairly tough battle at the front.

There are a raft of Aussie professionals there too. One theory that has been floated regarding that is that with Chrissie Wellington scheduled to be racing Ironman Australia (IMA), and with the 8% rule now enforced by the WTC, the next best option was New Zealand.

A great theory but with Wellington now out of IMA what has been left is a posse of pursuers who will be there to swoop should Crawford or Lawn fumble.

Kate Bevilaqua is our darkhorse for this one. She can run the house down and is smart enough not to get caught up in the racing at the front. Injury stemming from last season may slow her but only time will tell. Add Kim Loeffler, Nicole Ward, Ali Fitch and Sarah Pollett and you have a very talented group.

Taupo's intrigue is quite compelling this season. There are the monoliths of the race in Lawn and Brown racing to further enhance their legend and those who would try to topple them. It promises to be a fascinating day.