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June 28, 2005

Racing News and Views 28/6

The middle of winter is generally a pretty desolate period for punters - but as always, there is something of interest happening all around Australia.

Just last Saturday, I was at Moonee Valley to see a quite remarkable feat, as Dandy Kid notched up his 14th win at Moonee Valley. Now, this does not put the Kid in the same league as Moonee Valley heroes such as Manikato and Kingston Town - but it should be acknowledged all the same. The horse has now won 18 starts and about $770,000 in prizemoney. Robbie Griffiths has done a marvellous job with this horse and should be commended.

Saturday's meeting was also successful for the MVRC, getting a crowd of 4,000 people to an ordinary Saturday winter meeting. Experiencing the newly renovated MVRC members facilities for the first time, I was very impressed with what I saw. The 'Octagonal room' is a very nice facility, with a number of big screens to watch interstate races, and good proximity to bookmakers and the parade ring, meaning that one does not, as at Flemington, have to be constantly sprinting between places.

The vast majority of winners seemed to sit right outside the leader, as runners had difficulty making ground on the tight Valley circuit, except the 70-1 shot who got up in the sixth!

Sadly, I only found the one winner, but a pleasant day was had by all.

In other news, Elvstroem has bowed out of racing after a gallant fourth on Sunday night in France. He was only a head behind the winner of last year's Prix D'Arc de Triomphe.

In recent years, starting with Better Loosen Up's 1990 Japan Cup win, Australian horses have shown that they can mix it with the world's best, which is great for the Australian industry.

Lindsey Smith, trainer of Plastered has announced the VRC and WA Derby winner will attempt to become the only horse after Rising Fast to win the Cox Plate, Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup in the same year. Previously only a Cups campaign was planned for the gelding.

Speaking of those three races, here are some early markets from Michael Eskander:

MELBOURNE CUP

$9 Plastered
$11 Westerner
$13 Distinction, Dizelle
$15 Demerger
$21 Accumulate, Makybe Diva
$26 Count Ricardo, First Charter, Kitten's Joy, Mahtoum, Orpington, Perlin, Uprize, Vanquished, Vouvray, Xcellent

CAULFIELD CUP

$10 Plastered
$13 Dizelle
$15 Perlin
$17 Hollow Bullet
$21 Sir Dex
$26 Activation, Binding, Count Ricardo, She's Justa Tad, Storm Alert, Uprize, Vouvray, Xcellent
$34 First Charter, Lyrical Bid, Makybe Diva, Mr Celebrity, Mummify, Natural Blitz, Platinum Scissors, Portland Singa, Stella Grande, Vanquished, Winning Belle

COX PLATE

$6 Makybe Diva
$7 Grand Armee, Starcraft
$9 Greys Inn
$11 Valixir
$13 Mummify, Razkalla
$15 Private Steer
$17 Phoenix Reach
$21 Binding, Fields of Omagh, Lotteria, Plastered
$26 Dizelle, Fashions Afield, Perlin, Shamekha, Snitzel, Stratum, Winning Belle

I don't really go in for punting at this long a range myself, but I think having something on Count Ricardo and She's Justa Tad at $26 for the Cups could be a worthwhile investment.

Tip for tomorrow:

Sandown

4/3 Lord of Lauriston - Down in class and back to favoured 1000m distance after fading away over 1200m at Flemington. Loves the track and gets in well after the claim.

Best of luck punters as always.

Posted by Tim in Gallop News at June 28, 2005 08:42 PM

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