With the opening day of The Championships showcasing some great racing in the Doncaster Mile and TJ Smith Stakes, it’s time to look ahead to the two biggest races at this weekend’s meeting.
Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m, weight-for-age, $4,000,000)
Now the world’s richest 2000m turf race, the Queen Elizabeth Stakes is the centrepiece of Sydney’s autumn racing carnival.
Some quality horses are lining up for this prestigious race, though the most famous of the lot is current favourite Carlton House.
Owned by Queen Elizabeth II, he finally showed Australia what all the fuss is about when he ran a close second to Silent Achiever last start in the Ranvet a month ago. He should be hitting peak fitness now and a rematch with the five year-old kiwi mare should make for some fantastic viewing.
Silent Achiever, the BMW winner, is on the second line of betting and will be out to make it four Group 1 wins in a row. It’s a brave punter to say she can’t complete this feat with the form she’s in.
Another superstar in the line-up is It’s A Dundeel. This will most likely be his last race before heading out to stud, so the talented stallion will be looking to retire with a bang. Punters should get the best odds that he has been at in a long time.
After cleaning up Saturday’s Doncaster Mile by training the first four runners past the post, Chris Waller will once again be well represented by a probable five runners.
Star gelding Boban is reportedly on target, with a strong gallop on Saturday morning after being scratched from the Doncaster due to the heavy conditions. The track is likely to be more suitable this week, with sunshine forecast from Thursday onwards in Sydney.
Sacred Falls and Royal Descent – the quinella from the Doncaster – are joined by fourth-placed Hawkspur and My Kingdom of Fife (tenth) in the Queen Elizabeth field. Hopefully fitness doesn’t let them down after running on the heavy track on Saturday, then stepping out at distance this week.
Of the other runners, past Melbourne Cup winner Green Moon is worth watching.
The stallion looked in good form last start when he ran a close second to Fiorente a month ago in the Australian Cup. He will be hoping the weather forecast is correct and the track improves as he struggles on a slow track.
We should be in for a cracking race.
Sydney Cup (3200m, handicap, $1,000,000)
The Sydney Cup is one of the premier staying races on the Australian calendar. Trainers who enter horses into this race generally make sure that their runners are hitting peak fitness, so there are plenty of opportunities to gauge the form for this race.
Currently leading the betting is the in-form Gai Waterhouse gelding, The Offer, who has won his last two races by a combined margin of six lengths in Group company. He loves any give in the ground and looks as though he can stay the distance of 3200m, and should also get in light at a weight of around 53kg.
On the next line of betting is Voleuse De Cours, a two-time winner at the distance who should appreciate an improved track if the sun can dry it out.
Another proven at this trip is kiwi raider Who Shot Thebarman. The lightly raced five-year-old has won six of his nine starts, including the Group 1 Auckland Cup over 3200m last start. That form reads pretty good heading into this.
Last year’s winner Mourayan started his prep in good fashion with two solid runs in Melbourne, but he hasn’t raced in over a month since his fast-finishing fourth behind Fiorente in the Australian Cup. He was entered in the BMW, along with Green Moon, but both horses were withdrawn because of the wet track.
Mourayan needs the surface to dry out considerably, while Sertorius has been steady all prep without posting a win. His trainer Jamie Edwards stated that he didn’t handle the heavy going on Saturday and if the track doesn’t improve, he may not take his place in the line-up.
One of the up and comers that has accepted is Tupac Amaru, the Peter Snowden-trained three-year-old colt.
He ran a very impressive second behind Criterion in Saturday’s Australian Derby and looks to have a heap of talent. History is not on his side however, as a three year-old has not won this race in 16 years. Still, it is hard to write him off.
Let’s hope the rain stays away this week. If we get a decent track, we should be in for another fantastic day’s racing.
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