Super Saturday–Caulfield Guineas Day

Mighty Boss wins the 2017 Caulfield Guineas

With fine and sunny weather forecast for Saturday, the Caulfield Guineas meeting promises to be a sterling afternoon of first class racing with four Group 1 races and a strong support card.

It’s going to be a very long day with the races run at 35 minute intervals early in the day, but longer intervals of up to 50 minutes from Race 7 to Race 9, to accommodate coverage of The Everest in Sydney.

I normally would take my time getting to Caulfield on Guineas Day but this year I’m keen to get a look at an unusual white filly running in the first race. Aptly named Utzon, she is a daughter of The Opera House,  a pure white mare who raced briefly without much success earlier this decade. I mentioned her in a blog post back then.

Exceptionally well bred, being a three quarter sister to Might and Power, The Opera House has produced three white foals and Utzon is the first hit the racetrack. Utzon trialled the other day and showed great promise, winning comfortably after leading throughout.

There is a plethora of quality racehorses performing at Caulfield on Saturday, several of whom I have not seen in the flesh, such as the Chris Waller contingent of D’Argento, Unforgotten and The Autumn Sun, all potential stars who have previously won at Group 1 level.

Then there are the Internationals having their first run on Australian soil, and personal favourites such as golden girl Sunlight who is one of a field of 13 in Race 3, the Group 3 Thoroughbred Club Stakes. Sunlight shares topweight with the talented Enbihaar who was the Blue Diamond Stakes runner up, so it looks a match race between these two fillies.  Others in the picture are Humma Humma and Meryl.

The first of the Group 1 races to run is the Thousand Guineas, the fillies equivalent of the Caulfield Guineas and a stellar field of talented girls will contest the 1600 metre event. Top picks are Smart Melody, Thrillster, Amphitrite, Fiesta and El Dorado Dreaming.

More class is on display in the Group 1 Toorak Handicap, run over 1600 metres as well. Hartnell, the surprise Epsom Handicap winner is top weight and faces stiff competition from the likes of Rupert Clark Stakes winner Jungle Cat, Dollar for Dollar, Land of Plenty and mares I Am A Star, Shillelagh and Noire.

Two high class International race horses, out here for the Cups and Cox Plate, have accepted for the Caulfield Stakes (now called Ladbroke Stakes), these being Benbatl, a Group 1 winner in the UK and Thecliffsofmoher trained by the canny Aiden O’Brian from Ireland.  It will be interesting to see how they fare against the locals – Humidor, Night’s Watch, D’Argento and Unforgotten – and acclimatised imports such as Tosen Basil and Homesman. 

The Caulfield Guineas is scheduled to run at 5.15pm as Race 9, but is well worth hanging around for, having attracted an excellent field.  Last year rank outsider Mighty Boss won at 100/1 denying highly fancied Sydney colt Kementari the prize, and this year the top contenders are Sydney colt The Autumn Sun and the locally trained Native Soldier and Leonardo Da Hinchi.  Also in with a chance are the Hawkes trained contender Outrageous, the Mick Price trained Tavisan and sole filly, the ever honest Oohood.

In Sydney, The Everest,  the richest sprint race in the world is run at 4.15pm on a heavy track. There are many chances the best being last year’s winner Redzel, latest sprint sensation Santa Ana Lane, Vega Magic who ran third last year in the race, and speedy mares Viddora and Shoals.

The Stars Will Be Shining at Moonee Valley On Friday Night

Lankan Rupee & Angelic Light fight out the finish of the McEwen Stakes 6 September 2014

As much as I dislike night racing (mostly because it is awful for taking photos), I’m really tempted to go to Moonee Valley’s first night meeting this Friday, where the feature race is the Group 1 Moir Stakes, a sprint over 1200 metres.  Unlike last year, the feature race is scheduled at the reasonably early hour of 8.15pm rather than as the last on the card at 10.00pm as was the case then, where the bulk of  patrons departed before the race was run. Wise move MVRC!

As well as the feature race, there is a top class support card with two Group 2 and Group 3 races on the program.

Commanding Jewel and Dear Demi meet again in the Group 2 Stocks Stakes (1600 metres), so if I do attend the meeting, I’ll have to get there early enough to witness it.  These two are the top contenders, meeting last in the Let’s Elope Stakes, where Commanding Jewel prevailed narrowly over Dear Demi. Of the other five in the field, Solicit appears as the next best chance. Last year Commanding Jewel’s big sister Atlantic Jewel won the Stock Stakes, so it would be nice if Commanding Jewel could keep it in the family.

The Moir Stakes is the fourth race on the program. A small field of five acceptors will compete for the prize money, chief among them Lankan Rupee who will be out to redeem his reputation after his shock defeat to Angelic Light in the McEwen Stakes in early September at this course.  Angelic Light is one of the five contestants along with Buffering and Rebel Dane. I’ll be cheering for the horse with a heart.

Hot on the heels of the feature race is the Group 3 Champagne Stakes, a race for three year old fillies over 1200 metres. It has a doozie of a field as well with Eloping and Tawteen being the main chances. Eloping finished third in the McEwen Stakes after battling out that race with Lankan Rupee and probably contributed to his defeat. Tawteen is on a winning roll, her last victory being at Moonee Valley on Dato Tan Chin Nam Stakes Day, where she won by over 3 lengths.

The Cleaner makes a welcome return in the Group 3 JRA Cup which is run over the Cox Plate distance of 2040 metres. No doubt he’ll take up the running as is his style ala Vo Rogue. Can any of the rest of the field run him down in the short straight? It’s a big field of 13 contestants, mostly stayers. Old Precedence has a good record at Moonee Valley and could mount a challenge. Others with a chance are Big Memory who finished second to Brambles at Flemington recently, Mourinho who ran second to The Cleaner in the Dato Tan and won this race last year, and Signoff who has been recently placed in weaker races and has won at the track in the past.

The seventh race is the Group 2 Stutt Stakes for three year olds run over 1600 metres. It is seen as a match race between local hero Chivalry and Sydney colt Almalad, both of whom were beaten at their last starts and will be out to prove themselves. Also in the picture are Zebulon, Kumaon and  Caveka.

There is no major race meeting in Melbourne on Saturday with the AFL Grand Final dominating the sporting arena locally, however in Sydney racing is as normal with two interesting Group races.

The first of these is the Stan Fox Stakes, a race for three year olds over 1500 metres. Top chances are Scissor Kick who narrowly lost the Golden Rose to Hallowed Crown and Shooting To Win who ran third in that race. 

Catkins continues her Spring campaign in the Group 3 Golden Pendant (1400 metres) against her own sex. No doubt she’ll start as hot favourite and could well prevail.  Her main opponents appear to be Arabian Gold and My Sabeel.

A second Group 1 race will be run at Caulfield on Sunday, that being the Sir Rupert Clark Stakes, run over 1400 metres.  Dissident will be aiming for his third win in succession and could well do so, even if he is racing back in distance. He faces Sweet Idea again who was runner-up in the Memsie Stakes. Others with claims are Atlante, Cluster, Late Charge and Trust In A Gust who all won their last starts.

Also on the program on Sunday are two Group 2 Guineas Preludes, one for fillies and the other for colts and geldings, which have both attracted really good fields that I don’t feel like analysing here. 

Finally on a breeding note…

There was news today about the pure white mare The Opera House, who is a three quarter sister to Might And Power, who had a short but not very successful racing career a couple of years ago. She was retired to the breeding barn after an injury and has had several foals since. However, her latest foal by High Chaparral is a duplicate of herself – a rare, pure white filly. Read the story (with photo) here.

The Opera House finally wins

No I’m not referring to famous architectural landmark in Sydney, but to the rare milk white race mare who shares its name.

The Opera House – photo from SMH by Darren Pateman

Yesterday in the NSW country town Wyong, The Opera House finally won a race. It was over 2100 metre and she scored by a comfortable two lengths. I have written about her previously, back in December 2009, when she had her first start in Newcastle. On that occasion she ran fifth.

As I have her in my black book on Racing & Sports, I have been alerted to her runs, and from nine starts she has placed five times, and now won once. She recently raced over 2100 metres at Gosford and came third on that occasion, but it is obvious that like a true Zabeel  she appreciates the extra distance.

She is yet to run on a city track, and it will be interesting to see if and when she does, how competitive she will be.

Her breeding is excellent, being a three quarter sister to the great Might & Power, but she is unlikely to attain anywhere near his achievements, which included the Melbourne Cup, the Caulfield Cup and the Cox Plate. I was at Moonee Valley when he won the Cox Plate in 1998 and still remember the occasion vividly.

On the subject of stars of the turf, So You Think will be racing in the UK  on Saturday (early Sunday morning here) in the Group One Sandown Coral Eclipse Stakes where he will be out to redeem his shock loss in the Prince of Wales Stakes at Ascot a fortnight ago.  He was only beaten by a short margin, when Rewilding pipped him at the post when flogged by Frankie Dettori to the line. Aiden O’Brien’s pacemaker tactics came undone when the pacemaker missed the start, and in making up ground bumped So You Think in passing, causing SYT to over race and go for the line too early.  A messy race.

Anyway, despite the opposition being a cut above the norm tomorrow – with top UK racehorses Workforce and Snow Fairy being part of the small field -  we in Australia will be cheering on our champ.

Update: Sunday, 3rd July
So You Think was the victor in the Eclipse Stakes beating Workforce by what looked to be a length,  after giving him a two length lead. At one stage it looked as if Workforce would win, as So You Think, blocked for a run on the inside, seemed to become unbalanced, but he recovered and stormed down the outside with his characteristic devastating sprint to pass his rival and win.