The City Tattersalls Club Cup meeting will be held at Royal Randwick this Saturday. The course proper was rated a Good 4 on Thursday and with fine weather in Sydney leading up to the weekend, Randwick will be racing on a Good track on raceday.
The big Caulfield Cup meeting will be held at Caulfield this Saturday. The course proper was rated a Good 3 on Thursday and with overcast weather forecast for Melbourne over the next couple of days, the Caulfield Cup is likely to be held on a Good track.
Sydneysider Sylpheed can put punters on the right course in the opening event at Caulfield on Saturday (Melbourne Race 1, 1400m). The Waterhouse & Bott-trained filly won brilliantly 1st up here at Caulfield a fortnight ago. She settled mid-field and ran away from the field in the straight. Co-incidentally Sylpheed will start from barrier 11 again and I can see her run an almost identity race on Saturday. Damien Oliver will once again be piloting Sylpheed and she looks hard to beat.
The Godolphin-owned Morton’s Fork has never finished worse than 2nd in 6 career starts and is primed to take out the Gothic Stakes (Melbourne Race 2, 1400m). The 3YO won well 1st up over 1300m. Stepping up to 1400m 2nd up looks perfect and Morton’s Fork can handle any track conditions. The in-form Brenton Avdulla will take over the rein this Saturday. From barrier 5, Morton’s Fork will park mid-field one off the fence and he will sprint home strongly in the straight.
The Team Snowden-trained Tycoon Tara has been in tip top form this preparation and she looks the testing material in the Group 2 Tristarc Stakes (Melbourne Race 7, 1400m). The 6YOmare won 3of her 4 starts this prep, culminating to her last start victory over this trip in the Golden Pendant Stakes where she led from start to finish. She can handle the tricky Caulfield course as she has won twice at the track and Tycoon Tara can also handle any types of track condition. From barrier 3, Kerrin McEvoy will go forward on the mare and Tycoon Tara is the one they all have to catch.
International horses have won 2 of the past 4 Caulfield Cup and on Saturday, another international horse is likely to win the Cup again. (Melbourne Race 8, 2400m). And that horse would be Scottish. This 5YO gelding has been very much inform winning twice with a 2nd & a 3rd from 4 starts this year. Three starts back, Scottish beat last year’s Caulfield Cup runner-up Trip To Paris over 2012m. And he broke the 1800m track record last start in the Strensall Stake at York. Scottish also boasts a strong form reference at 2400m with his second behind subsequent Hong Kong Vase and King George VI winner Highland Reel in the G3 Gordon Stakes at Goodwood last season. From barrier 7, Kerrin McEvoy will have plenty of options on where to settle the gelding. With only 55kg, Scottish’s class should prevail in the Caulfield Cup.
By Owens Wong, Editor
