Races

VIDEO: Simon Marshall – Golden Slipper

Posted on | Posted by Simon Marshall

The $3.5 million Golden Slipper is the richest two-year-old race in the world. In this year’s edition we’ll see the undefeated Blue Diamond winner Catchy take on the undefeated Magic millions winner Houtzen – that in itself is something to get excited about. When you throw in Sydney’s star two-year-old filly She Will Reign, who was unbeaten until her defeat on the heavy track last start, it becomes a really mouth-watering prospect.

Once again we’re faced with forecast rain and a heavy track in the Harbour City and that makes form study a little more difficult, however we’ll endeavour to do our best to point you into a winner.

The fillies look like the ones to beat this year with seven of them proven on the wet track. It may well simply boil down to who handles it best on the day. The Hayes-Dabernig stable has four fillies in the race with Catchy seemingly the pick of the bunch. However, she has not been tested on the heavy ground and that is always a massive query. Her stablemate Tulip really caught the eye last weekend when winning on the Soft 7 on this track and over the six furlongs and is certain to be around the mark.

Despite the talent of the two abovementioned fillies, in my opinion Houtzen looks to be a freak. She won the Magic Millions on the Gold Coast comfortably after jumping from a wide barrier and crossing the field to lead all the way. She proved her brilliance once again after a seven-week break winning with 60kg on a soft track to win by four lengths as a lead-up to this race and all she needs to do is travel well and I think she can win.

Of the colts I think the best chance is  it would be #5 Diamond Tathagata from the Mark Newnham stable. On debut he ran 2nd to She Will Reign over 1000m before a seven-week freshen-up. On his return to racing he relished the heavy going and beat rival #4 Single Bullet, who has since franked that form by winning the Pago Pago Stakes. A must for the multiples.

Moving on, we turn our attention to the George Ryder Stakes over 1500m where superstar Winx will be shooting for her 11th Group One and her 16th straight win. The chances, if any, include Le Romain who nosed out Chautauqua in the Canterbury Stakes, the great Chautauqua himself who shouldn’t be written off as he steps up to 1500m. Another to keep an eye on is #4 Tosen Stardom. He returned to the track after a long break and ran second at Group One level over 1400m at Caulfield last start and, while he has no form in the heavy going, in my opinion he could be the horse to cause a boil over.

Finally, the Rosehill Guineas rounds out the smorgasbord of Group One races for analysis. Here we see the Victoria Derby winner Prized Icon up take on the New Zealand Derby winner Gingernuts and the Randwick Guineas winner Inference looking to add to his CV.

There is always a question mark over horses travelling across the Tasman but Gingernuts showed he was very strong at the end of 2400m in the New Zealand Derby so the 2000m trip on the heavy track shouldn’t pose any issue. That said, I’m sticking with Inference, who I thought showed he was on an upward spiral when winning the Randwick Guineas. The rise to 2000m should be absolutely perfect for him. And, in conclusion, you know I love a roughie an’ d #8 Sizzling Bullet fits this bill. He’s a winner over 2000m, has had enjoyed a four-week break, loves the wet tracks and is trained by the master Chris Waller. That ticks a number of boxes.

Good luck and, please, gamble responsibly.




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