The Randwick Guineas meeting will be held at Royal Randwick this Saturday (9th Mar). The course proper was rated a Good 4 on Thursday and with mainly fine weather in Sydney leading up to the weekend, Randwick will be racing on a Good track on raceday.
Red Resistance can take out the Fireball Stakes being first-up from a break of 53 weeks (Sydney Race 4, 1100m). This Russian Revolution colt is very promising as he beat eventual Slipper winner Shinzo in the Canonbury Stakes and Champagne Stakes winner Militarize in the Todman Stakes last autumn. He is unbeaten over 1100m winning both starts at the trip. Waterhouse has tuned him up with two 900m trials where he won the latter by 2.5 lengths. Nash Rawiller will go straight to the front and sit inside Keenan and Red Resistance will show them a clean pair of heels.
First-up specialist Remarque could be the one to beat in the Challenge Stakes (Sydney Race 6, 1000m). This Team Hawkes-trained 5YO has won four times with a 3rd placing from six first-up starts and he has won twice over this course and trip. The Snitzel gelding has been competitive against some strong opposition like Eduardo, Passive Aggressive, Overpass and Private Eye. Though race favourite Private Eye is a class horse, he could be vulnerable racing over 1000m again second-up. Tommy Berry will take a sit off a very fast pace from gate 1 and Remarque is going to run over the top of them.
The Waller-trained Militarize has been a proven Group 1 performer and he looks set to add the Randwick Guineas to his résumé (Sydney Race 8, 1600m). The Dundeel colt has won over the mile by taking out the Champagne Stakes last autumn. And he has improved further in the spring by winning the Golden Rose before being beaten only 2.3 lengths in the Cox Plate. And he loves Randwick having won twice with further two placings from four starts at the venue. The 3YO ran a brave 2nd to stablemate Fangirl when he resumed in the Apollo Stakes at weight-for-age three weeks ago and it really suits him well dropping back to a set weight 3YO event. James McDonald will settle mid-field from the good gate (4) and Militarize will produce a withering sprint down the Randwick straight.
By Owens Wong
