Races

VIDEO: Marshall’s Mail – The Championships Day 2

Posted on | Posted by Simon Marshall

The Championships and Autumn Carnival come to a close this Saturday at Randwick, but the stage is set to finish with a bang.

Organisers have saved the best for last as champion racehorse Winx shoots for her 17th straight win – and 12th Group 1 victory – in the $4 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes over 2000m. I think she will win and win quite comfortably. In the process she will close in on the magical $13 million prizemoney mark – an amazing feat.

If Winx again wins in a canter, all the interest will be on who runs second and third.

I think Hartnell looks to be peaking fourth up, can handle the soft conditions and loves the 2000m and is sure to run a bold race. Others worth including in the multiples are The United States, who was second in this race last year, and Exospheric who battled gamely in the heavy going when third in the BMW.

Moving on from the Queen Elizabeth, the $1 million Australian Oaks for three-year-old fillies over 2400m promises to be a fascinating spectacle.

It looks as though the Kiwis could strike again with the New Zealand Oaks quinella Bonneval and Devise set to be hardest to beat. Bonneval looked very impressive winning the New Zealand Oaks after settling last, making a move at the 600 metre mark and rounding them up impressively. Drawn six I think she’ll be hardest to beat.

As mentioned I think Devise has to be a danger, while I expect the Vinery Stud Stakes form line to be a strong one. As such, Nurse Kitchen and Harlow Gold, who ran second and third in that race respectively, should be around the mark stepping up the mile and a half.

I thought Nurse Kitchen looked a little unlucky in that run, as she had to switch from the rails halfway down the straight to get to the outside before finishing really powerfully.

Harlow Gold, on the other hand, looked the winner at the 200 metre mark but just didn’t look comfortable in the heavy conditions. With the drying track and the fact she’s proven at 2400m (she ran second in the VRC Oaks over 2500m in the spring), she has to go in everything.

The lightly raced Filly on the scene is Waking Moment. I loved her win in the Adrian Knox Stakes last start where she came from near last at the 800m, got pushed wide on the bend but finished strongly. She is bred to get over a bit of ground and with Craig Williams in the saddle she could be the blow out. In fact, she is going to be one of my SuperPicks.

Finally this year’s addition of the $2 million Sydney Cup is a cracker with six of the 14 runners having one at 3200m.

All the talk has been about Big Duke, who won last Saturday over 2600m and carrying 58kg in the process. He now drops to 52 kg and just needs to back up seven days later to be the one to beat.

There are a couple of international raiders from the Charlie Appleby stable in Penglai Pavillion and Polarisation who are both proven at the distance and also on the soft track. While hard to know just how strong their form lines are, with the light weights they should be go close. If looking for the best roughie, I think Annus Mirabilis has to be thrown in your multiples. But it’s Big Duke from Polarisation for me.

To my SuperPicks:

Australian Oaks – Waking Moment – Profit Plus 50% (PLACE)

Sydney Cup – Big Duke – Profit Plus 50% (WIN)

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