Sydney: A comprehensive preview of every race at Randwick

A COMPREHENSIVE preview of every race for Saturday’s meeting at Randwick with Shayne O’Cass.

Can Happy Clapper take out the Epsom? Picture: Jenny Evans

NOTE: RACES are assessed for a Good 3. All horses are considered starters unless notified by Thursday 1 PM. (N/R) denotes no rating.

RACE 1

5. JORDA (N/R) was in my opinion the best trialler of the fillies at the official heats and by simple logic has to go on top. Her Godolphin stablemate Calliope was in a similar position last year and she bolted in in the Gimcrack. Jorda is by the supreme 2YO sire Exceed And Excel out of a very good mare in Montmelo who has thrown two stakes horses from her three to race so far. That’s great. Gate 4 of 9 is a blessing too. I loved the trials of China Horse Club pair 4. GREATER GOOD (N/R) and 3. GRASSLANDS (N/R) who were 1st and 3rd respectively in their heat. Greater Good is a Fastnet Rock and looked very much like First Seal in the way she lengthened down the middle of the track with Blake Shinn no more than waving the whip in her vision and hearing to keep her mind of the job. As for Grasslands, she is a Snitzel that cost $420,000 at the Magic Millions, $10,000 less than Greater Good. Grassland, a Michael Freedman trained 2YO, didn’t have much room in her heat — she should have finished closer.

RACE 2

MICHAEL Freedman and the China Horse Club team up here again with $525,000 Magic Millions yearling 1. BOWERMAN (N/R) who won the first heat at the official trials here and I looked at my notes and it said something like ‘pacy type, ready made racehorse, perfect trial’. The colt is by Snitzel who last year equalled the record of Without Fear for the most number of 2YO winners with 30. The dam is an EDL half to Green Birdie who is a helluva good sprinter. This is a very fast and precocious family and this horse has thrown to type. Gate 3 — yippie. 5. KHAN (N/R) was a $260,000 James Harron Magic Millions yearling and is by Exceed And Excel out of a Daylami half to Manighar. It’s a lovely mix of speed and stamina this pedigree. There was plenty to enthuse about the way this fellow railed up on the inside of $1.1m Magic Millions yearling 11. SHOWTIME (N/R) who was held in check but I downgraded him because of the barrier. Thus for bronze, I elevated 2. CONDOR HEROES (N/R) who won his heat by a whopping 9.3-lens in very, very, very fast — the fastest of the whole morning at the official heats.

RACE 3

WINX was always going to win the George Main and of course she did, the one that I was bullish about for runner-up that day was 2. SPIRITJIM (107) due to the fact that I rated his trials as fantastic, the last one anyway. The Waller import finished 5th of 6 in the George Main but go back and look again and you’ll agree that outside of Winx and Hauraki, his was the best run of the others. Up to 2000m is just perfect — I wish it was a bit softer underfoot he being a Galileo but the step to 2000m is the key to victory. I fancy him as a Caulfield Cup horse if it’s wet on the day. 1. IT’S SOMEWHAT (108) is quite a classy internationalist from the Godolphin stable that has been here long enough to acclimatise and make something of a name for himself at the same time. The son of US champion stallion Dynaformer (the sire of Amercain) is third-up here off a 4th in the Tramway and a 3rd in the George Main but as I said, I thought Spiritjim was the take-out from the George Main going ahead. 7. BRING LUCK (71) is a good, honest and capable horse but you can easily see that he doesn’t have the same class as the two imports up at the top of the weights with benchmark negatives of 37 and 36 behind Spiritjim who ran in two Arc’s and It’s Somewhat.

RACE 4

WEEKS ago when I saw 3. OCTAVIAN AUGUSTUS (63) trial I immediately saw the Carbine Club winner in my crystal ball. This is a seriously good 3YO, not Astern or Impending class, but he is definitely the A minus miler grade of carnival quality. The very handsome son of Argentinian champion Husson was fantastic first-up at WF in that 1300m Bm72 on Sep. 14. He was caught up in traffic late in the piece and had plenty of scope. Everything about this guy screams big track miler and that’s what he gets tomorrow and hopefully on to Flemington after that. 4. HESSDALEN (62) is another rapidly progressive 3YO that will relish time and experience. He is a son of Alamosa, one of the best NZ milers in recent times, and that win at the provincials late start will see his confidence soar. He won quite convincingly, not margin wise, but he had to overcome a pretty significant degree of difficulty but he got the job done. Nice horse. 8. NEMRUD (56) is a Reset colt out of a half sister to the great Mummify. He was outstanding when runner-up to his ‘could be anything’ stablemate Bryneich first-up, less so next time when beaten not too far at the Farm over the mile. Capable of placing.

RACE 5

WHAT A race. I remember in the Slipper I tipped 1. ASTERN (105) to beat 2. CAPITALIST (105) much to my detriment but this time I feel I am on much safer ground in doing the same. Honesty, have we seen a better 3YO in recent times than Astern? Maybe Zoustar is comparable, I do think he’s better than Hallowed Crown but that’s just an opinion. The big fellow has been utterly devastating in winning the Run to the Rose and the Golden Rose and if we need a form reference, look no further than his stablemate Impending who is now the ruling Caulfield Guineas favourite. Granted, Astern has had that little setback after the Golden Rose but we have to trust O’Shea’s word and judgment that all is well. And what do we make of Capitalist? He was below his best in the San Domenico but that can happen with Slipper winners returning. He has been off since but I thought his trial win was adequate without being brilliant. He’s such a good colt, he could turn up at his best here and blow Astern away but I just want to see him do it first — that’s if he can of course. 5. GUARD OF HONOUR (78) wins nine out of 10 Roman Consuls but boy is he unlucky that circumstances have conspired against him to present him with the dual challenge of the Golden Slipper and Golden Rose winner. I love this colt but I just can’t see him beating the both of them at the same time.

Heavens Above will go head-to-head with Happy Clapper in the Epsom.

RACE 6

1. YANKEE ROAD (101) was backed off the map (how and why, please explain?) to win the Golden Rose, led and faded to finish 6th. She has some fans to win back — again I fail to see how any sane person could have backed her that day but anyway with Omei Sword out, she gets her big chance to bounce back and show us what she is made off. The big thing here folks is the blinkers off and she will be ridden with cover — two hugely significant factors. The James Cummings trained/Gooree bred and owned 3. SKYLIGHT GLOW (was who placed behind two really nice horses in Swear then Foxplay at her two runs this time in. With no Omei Sword, she is a massive player at the gold medal now — especially if Yankee Rose hasn’t come back but no one is really saying that are they? 5. SEZANNE (73) is the next best, she’s got a killer finish on her.

RACE 7

4. HAPPY CLAPPER (107) is aiming to become the first horse to do the Villiers/Epsom double since Rimveil back in 1940-1. Me? I would have thought there would be four of five that did, but anyway. On top of his Villiers victory, Happy Clapper was runner-up to the mighty Winx in the Doncaster in the autumn then chased home the nation’s second best mare, Lucia Valentina, in the $4m Queen Elizabeth Stakes. The Pat Webster trained galloper has done well in the lead-up running nice races in the Tramway and the Bill Ritchie when never really in room late in either race. That’s the worry tomorrow — gate 1 is not ideal but the Gun (aka Avdulla) found a saloon passage in the Villiers, maybe he can do it again? 10. HEAVENS ABOVE (103) is pitched in her at the weights with 51kgs on her back. She was G1 second to Azkadellia in the Queen of the Turf and her three runs in the spring have all been very good. It was impossible for any mare to make up ground in the Golden Pendant last week the way the race as run and the track played late in the late so I am marking her up on the run not down. 1. PALENTINO (111) has won 2 from 2 over the mile and they are both G1’s. He is a last start mile G1 winner over his stablemate Black Heart Bart which kinds says it all really.

RACE 8

METROP time and it’s a Waller-a-thon with the Kiwi maestro fronting up with 6 of the 13 runners and every one of them in a chance. That said, and dangerously so, I am tipping one to beat his half dozen in 5. SIR JOHN HAWKWOOD (106) from the John Thompson yard. Thompson has only had the horse for the one run and that was his second to McCreery in the Kingston Town and McCreery might be an Epsom winner before Sir John Hawkwood goes around in the Metrop. Allergic was third that day and we saw it win the Queen’s Cup at Rosehill last Saturday so it is a very deep race. He is going to be fitter for the run first-up and he is 2s 1-1-0 at the track/distance. In some ways, his best two runs have been his last two so he is seemingly ready to peak now. 7. SACRED MASTER (103) is a Waller stayer and won the Newcastle Cup last start. That was 2200m, he’ll have no issue with the extra 200m being a placegetter in the 3200m Auckland Cup at only his 13th start. He has gone 1500m/1800m/2100m and 2200m so has had maybe the best preparation of any horse in the race. 6. JUNOOB (104) won the Metrop in 2014 with 58kgs but was disqualified. The old boy was okay without being brilliant in the Queen’s Cup last start — brave is probably the best description. At last he get some weight relief — and a dry track — two very big pluses. re the weight he was never in his life carried less than 54kgs.

RACE 9

WELCOME back 2. OUR BOY MALACHI (106) — the best thing to come out of Rockhampton since Rod Laver and like him, this guy knows how to win. Indeed, the 8YO chestnut has won 18 of 24 with two placings and one bleed. He is 4s 2w at Rosehill, 7s 5-0-1 at the 1200m and 3s 2w at the t/d. He is also, and wait for this one, 8s 7-1-0 first-up! The Team Hawkes star has trialled twice, he jogged around the 900m to win an Aug. 30 heat then was slow out, back and sneaking up along the inside late under zero pressure in his 893m heat here at Rosehill on Monday. Barrier 12 is a bit of a worry I suppose but I bet he’s won from worse. Team Hawkes stablemate KAEPERNICK (101) was my best bet first-up in the G2 Shorts and I am still a bit dirty about things, he should have won I reckon but that’s the oozing punters refrain. He is 4s 2-1-0 second-up, he is 1 for 1 here and will, as always, relish a fast tempo so he can let rip. Just needs an out this time. 4. TAKE-DOWN (106) won The Shorts and well done to him; he’s building up a very good record and is no longer one that can be taken lightly. Might I just add as a little aside, Takedown is trained by Gary Moore, one of the world’s nicest human beings and a man who ride the Arc de Triomphe winner on this weekend back in 1981 just like his immortal father, George did 22 years earlier aboard the great Saint Crespin.