Group 1-winning mare over the odds in Group 1 Oakleigh Plate at Caulfield
Bookies haven’t shown an Oakleigh Plate runner much respect despite it being the only Group 1 winner in the race.
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Te Akau Racing could be excused for wondering whether there was something wrong with Skew Wiff after bookies opened betting on Saturday’s Group 1 Oakleigh Plate at Caulfield.
TAB posted the Mark Walker-trained mare at $26 in an Oakleigh Plate market dominated by the top two picks, the $3.50 favourite Kings Gambit and the $4.50 second pick Asfoora.
Skew Wiff is a huge price for a horse that will be the only Group 1 winner in the Oakleigh Plate field while coming from the same stable that won last Saturday’s Lightning Stakes with Imperatriz.
The four-year-old mare defeated the high-class galloper Legarto in her Group 1 win in the Tarzino Trophy (1400m) at Hastings last September.
Skew Wiff won a Group 3 race at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day before running a solid fifth at her last run in the Group 1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield.
Te Akau Racing’s Melbourne representative Ben Gleeson said Skew Wiff was good enough to threaten first-up, despite dropping back to 1100m in the Oakleigh Plate.
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“She goes very well fresh,” Gleeson said.
“She’s had two jumpouts and she’s spot-on for Saturday. She’ll improve second-up but she’ll run a good race fresh.”
Gleeson said Skew Wiff would audition for a start in the Newmarket Handicap, possibly alongside her superstar stablemate at Flemington on March 9.
“She’s a little bit similar to Imperatriz in that regard, keep her fresh and she’ll show that acceleration that won her a Group 1 in New Zealand,” Gleeson said.
“I do think she can win a Group 1 over here. If she can run top four, she’ll go on to the Newmarket. We’ll just have to see what weight she gets in the Newmarket.”
Gleeson said Imperatriz had pulled up perfectly from her narrow win over smart Sydney galloper Private Eye in the Lightning Stakes.
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“She pulled up beautifully,” he said.
“It was a sit-and-sprint race, which suited her, and she has made a nice recovery from it.
“She was actually brighter post-race than she was before it. The stimulation of racing really brightened her up.”
Gleeson said Imperatriz would gallop next Tuesday before connections decided whether to aim the eight-time Group 1 winner at the Newmarket Handicap, in which she was almost certain to top the weights.
TAB assessed Imperatriz as a $4.50 favourite in Newmarket Handicap betting but rated the mare a doubtful starter.
Originally published as Group 1-winning mare over the odds in Group 1 Oakleigh Plate at Caulfield
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