Super Saturday at Rosehill

Signage at Rosehill Racecourse

Last year at this time I went to Sydney for Mystic Medusa’s Astrological New Year dinner, and whilst there attended the Ranvet Stakes meeting at Rosehill on the Saturday afternoon.

This year I’ll be home in Melbourne, but will be watching with keen interest the tremendous race card at Rosehill Racecourse.

The meeting last year was relatively low key, with only two Group 1 races, but NSW racing has rearranged their autumn program, so that this year several Group 1 races which used to be run later in the season, have been rescheduled and added more glitz to the third Saturday in March.

The feature race this year is the Golden Slipper Stakes, the richest race for two year olds in the world. Last year it was run on a bog track and fillies filled the first seven places with Mossfun defeating Earthquake and Bring Me The Maid.

Mossfun at Rosehill 22 March 2014

It appears this year’s version of the Slipper will be dominated by the colts, the Gai Waterhouse trained Vancouver in particular. His 3½ length win in the Todman Stakes recently was spectacular. However he has drawn the extreme outside barrier, which gives his rivals a slight chance of beating him. Furnaces and Headwater ran second and third in the Todman Stakes, so have to have a chance, but Exosphere who won his last start by 4 lengths is probably Vancouver’s main rival. I rather fancy Haptic who is yet to be beaten, but wonder if he has the same class as the favourite.

Fillies have won the last two Golden Slippers  (Mossfun 2014 & Overreach 2013) and the girls with a chance this year are Fireworks, Ottoman, English, Reemah and Lake Geneva (the latter two ran second and third in the Blue Diamond).

The Golden Slipper is scheduled as Race 7, but the first of the Group 1 races will  be the Ranvet Stakes, run over 2000 metres as Race 4.   Silent Achiever won it last year pipping the Queen’s horse Carlton House at the post. It would be great if she could win it a second time and she has good chance if she can beat the in form Contributor who has won his two starts this autumn and is the hot favourite. The Ranvet has a really intriguing field with stayers from Hong Kong (Dominant), Japan (Tosen Stardom) and New Zealand (Fast Dragon) here especially for the Sydney Championships, plus familiar  locals like He’s Your Man and Lucia Valentina.

Race 5 is the Group 1 Rosehill Guineas also run over 2000 metres, but for three year olds. 

Randwick Guineas winner Hallowed Crown is the one to beat. Trying to do so will be the unbeaten New Zealand Derby winner Mongolian Khan, Victorian Derby winner Preferment and runners up in the aforementioned races  - Volkstok’n’barrell (NZ Derby) and Sweynesse (Randwick Guineas).

As opposed to the small field for the Rosehill Guineas (7 runners), the Group 1 Galaxy has attracted a full field of 14 starters.  It is a sprint over 1100 metres and I’m delighted to see Miracles of Life and Rubick in the field.  Deep Field who had his colours lowered in the Lightning Stakes, and was further humiliated at his last start where he was beaten by the lowly Target In Sight, is also one of the contenders, as are the smart Sweet Idea, Avoid Lightning and Melbourne mare Chloe in Paris who has won her last three starts. I’m hoping little Miracles of Life can add some more Group 1  glory to her CV.

The final Group 1 race on the program is the George Ryder Stakes (1500 metres) which has attracted a full field of middle distance runners, many of them winners at Group 1 level. Super mare Cosmic Endeavour who won the Canterbury Stakes at her last start, will no doubt start as favourite. Other familiar names in the mix are Sacred Falls, Criterion, Moriarty, Weary and Royal Descent. Caulfield Guineas winner Shooting To Win and Kermadec, the unsuccessful favourite in the Australian Guineas, have bypassed the Rosehill Guineas to run in this and could easily be in the finish.  There are also two Japanese horses, World Ace and Real Impact who it is unwise to ignore completely.

The weather in Sydney is supposed to be cloudy with little rain, and the track is reported today as being good surface wise.

Update Sunday:

My speculations on the likely outcomes of the five Group 1 races were fairly accurate, even if I do not specify tips.

The Ranvet Stakes was won by Contributer – no surprise – with the Japanese horse Tosen Stardom running second and Lucia Valentina  taking out third.

Volkstok’n’barrell stormed home to win the Rosehill Guineas from Preferment and Hallowed Crown.

Sweet Idea won her first Group 1 in the Galaxy at long odds with Kuro running second and Miracles of Life doing well, after a pretty torrid run, to run third.

The favourite Vancouver confirmed the wraps around him with a stunning win in the Golden Slipper with the filly English giving Gai Waterhouse the Golden Slipper quinella. Lake Geneva ran third.

Finally, Japanese horse Real Impact held on narrowly  to win the George Ryder Stakes from Criterion. Three year old Kermadec ran third.

My Thoughts for Two Guineas

Shamus Award – winner of the 2014 Australian Guineas

The title of this post is a reflection on the unusual situation where two Group 1 Guineas races for three year olds are being run on the same day, these being the Randwick Guineas in Sydney and the Australian Guineas at Flemington tomorrow.  One rather wonders who was responsible for the programming, but it all smacks of the tedious rivalry between Sydney’s racing authorities and Melbourne’s.

Both races are over the same distance of 1600 metres, but the Randwick Guineas offers better prize money ($60,000 more).  A very small, but classy field of six contestants will start in the Randwick Guineas. Top chances are Hallowed Crown, Sweynesse and Shooting To Win, who will probably run the trifecta.

The Australian Guineas, by contrast, despite attracting a capacity field, has not the same depth of class. Alpine Eagle who impressed with his Autumn Classic win at Caulfield last Saturday has to be a top chance. Then there’s  Wandjina who recently won the CS Hayes Stakes at Flemington at his last start and can’t be overlooked. The interesting runner is Admiral, a Tasmanian galloper who beat The Cleaner at his last start. He’s had twelve starts for nine wins in his home state, and could well steal the prize from the mainlanders.  Kermadec was originally entered into the Randwick Guineas, but was scratched from that to run in this. He ran a close third to Hallowed Crown and Sweynesse in the Hobartville Stakes at his last start so is also likely to be in the finish.

There are the two fillies – Fontein Ruby and Sweet And Speedy – who may cause a boilover. Several fillies have won this race in the past – Miss Finland, Shamrocker and Mosheen, for example.

The Flemington support card is not half as interesting as that at Randwick, where the Group 1 Canterbury Stakes is also on the program and has a really interesting field that includes the bonny grey mare Catkins trying again for her first Group 1 victory.  Whether she’ll succeed is another matter, as she faces a pretty classy field that includes Sacred Falls, Royal Descent, Criterion, Hooked and Cosmic Endeavour.  Whatever, I’ll be barracking for Catkins.

Another of my favourite mares, Miracles of Life resumes at Randwick in the Group 2 Challenge Stakes. At her second last start in Spring she dead heated with Bel Sprinter in the Caulfield Sprint. Also part of the field is Rubick, resuming after a break and Mossfun, the 2014 Golden Slipper winner.

Sort of Golden Slipper Preludes, the Group 2 Riesling Stakes and Todman Stakes kick off the Randwick program. Last year these two races were at Rosehill – I was there to watch them with Earthquake and Ghibellines being the respective winners.

The Riesling Stakes has smart fillies Fireworks, Ottoman and Stay With Me as the main contenders, whereas the Todman Stakes’ top chances are Headwater and Vancouver, both with big wraps on them, in what will be an interesting race to watch.

I’ll be heading out to Flemington for another afternoon at the races. Living Legends Apache Cat, who won the Australian Guineas in 2006 and Bullish Luck, a former Hong Kong champion racehorse will be there to add interest to the day.

The weather here in Melbourne is cool and overcast at present and is expected to be the same tomorrow; pleasant weather for the races and taking photographs.

Black Caviar Lightning 2015 Edition

Lankan Rupee exhibition gallop 14/2/15  at Caulfield

A great day of racing is coming up tomorrow with the prospect of the Black Caviar Lightning already quickening the excitement of first class racing with two of the top sprinters going head to head in the feature race.

Only six horses have accepted for the race – shades of the days when Black Caviar (after whom the race is named of course) graced the turf. The field however, though small, is select, with Lankan Rupee and the unbeaten and much hyped Deep Field both among the acceptances. Also in the mix is the handsome Brazen Beau who was last seen at Flemington winning the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes on Derby Day.

The above three are the main contenders and it is hard choose between them other than my personal preference for Lankan Rupee. Deep Field is having his first start at Group 1 level, and has won at Flemington over 1200 metres in a Listed race on Derby Day last spring.

But before the feature race is run, there are a number of interesting events beforehand.

I don’t think I’ll make it to the track by the first race, the Listed Talindert Stakes for two year olds. Half of the field are having their first start  and the one everyone will be watching is the filly Stay With Me who is a daughter of former champion filly Miss Finland by Street Cry.  Whether she’ll win is another matter, as she is up against a few more experienced youngsters in Jameka and Ragazzo Del Corsa.

Hopefully I will be at Flemington in time for Race 3, The Vanity, a Group 3 race for three year old fillies over 1400 metres. It has quite a classy field headed by 2014 Crown Oaks winner Set Square and the so far unbeaten Wawail aiming for her fifth win in succession.

Tawteen was originally nominated for the Black Caviar Lightning, but her connections opted for the easier Indian Summer  Handicap a race for fillies and mares over 1000 metres, where she has a better chance of winning. Her main opposition comes from Runway Star, Antarctic Missile, Cobblestones and Chloe In Paris.

The Group 3 CS Hayes Stakes is a race for Guineas bound three year colts and geldings run over 1400 metres.  The interesting runner  in this is Disposition, another classy West Australian having his first start in the eastern states. He ran a very close second in the Group 2 WA Guineas and the Group 1 Kingston Town Stakes and prior to that had been unbeaten in four runs. He is however up against the likes of San Nicasio, Stratum Star, Merion, Chivalry and Lucky Liberty.

The races in Sydney are at Rosehill this Saturday and the feature race on that course is the Group 2 Hobartville Stakes. For three year olds run over 1400 metres, it has attracted a really exciting field that contains Victoria Derby winner Preferment, Caulfield Guineas winner Shooting To Win, Golden Rose winner Hallowed Crown, Spring Champion winner Hampton Court and other smart runners like Scissor Kick and Delectation. The sole filly is Thunder Lady who won the Group 2 Wakeful Stakes and ran second in the Crown Oaks.

Old favourite Catkins, who kicked of her autumn campaign two weeks ago in the Group 2 Breeders Classic, winning it for the second time, resumes in the Group 2 Millie Fox Stakes (1300 metres).  She barely overcame Lilliburlero  in the aforementioned Breeders Classic and will be up against her again, along with the well performed Avoid Lightning and Mardi, but I hope Catkins rewards her many fans with another win.

Also run at Rosehill on Saturday is the Group 2 Silver Slipper Stakes, a sort of preview of the Golden Slipper Stakes, where I’m interested in seeing how impressive first start winner Ottoman performs.  Main chances other than Ottoman are Headwater and Paceman and Voilier who all won their first starts as well.

The weather in Melbourne tomorrow will be hot and sunny, so the track will be good. Despite the heat, I’m looking forward to being trackside at beautiful Flemington again.