Matamata girls in top draw
Probabeel and Amarelinha look to have drawn well
You could split them as girls v boys, Matamata v Cambridge or even by their stable names: Jamie Richards as opposed to Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman.
The barrier draws for Randwick’s glamour race day have divided the Kiwi assault into two camps. You could split them as girls v boys, Matamata v Cambridge or even by their stable names: Jamie Richards as opposed to Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman.
But no matter what you call them, it feels like all the luck in the draws has gone to one team and none to the other.
Richards’ Matamata girls Probabeel and Amarelinha looked to have drawn almost perfectly in their two A$1 million races, with Probabeel to start from barrier six in the Queen Of The Turf and Amarelinha from seven in the ATC Oaks.
Probabeel’s barrier six is the first time she has drawn inside nine this campaign and gives her the chance to stay well in front of key rival Colette, who drew barrier 12, and Probabeel could race handier than usual, which is how she won the Epsom on this track last October.
The draw and a couple of key withdrawals coupled with the improved Sydney forecast has seen Probabeel shorten from $4 to $2.50 with the Australian TAB in two days and she is likely to tighten further in the betting.
The Randwick track was rated a soft5 yesterday but could get back into the good range by Saturday with showers only forecast for Friday. Probabeel has won seven from nine on good tracks, her only unplaced run on a good track coming when fourth to Libertini first up as a 3-year-old over 1200m.
So a handy draw on a good track in a weight-for-age fillies and mares 1600m is just about the perfect race for her.
Amarelinha has barrier seven of 10 in a strong Oaks on Saturday but that gives jockey Opie Bosson the option of stalking the other favourites in the race who are all drawn around her.
Bosson has voiced the opinion that ridden cold for one run at the leaders, Amarelinha could do something special, and Saturday looks to give her the ideal chance to put an exclamation mark on her stellar debut season.
The barrier draw for Richards’ other high-class mare racing on Saturday, Entriviere, will come out today.
While he will be all smiles when he hops on the plane, not quite so chipper after the draw will be Forsman, who is in Sydney already looking after their stable’s two A$2 million Sydney Cup runners The Chosen One and Quick Thinker.
They could hardly have fared worse, with The Chosen One to start from the outside draw in the 16-horse field and Quick Thinker, who won the Chairman’s Handicap last Saturday, from 14.
At least the New Zealand-owned Rondinella drew well at barrier two in the Cup.
Also still part-owned here is glamour mare Verry Elleegant, who has drawn ideally at barrier four and is equal favourite for the A$4m Queen Elizabeth, the showpiece race of the carnival.
She shares favouritism with her English rival Addeybb, with the New Zealand-bred mare probably more at home on the expected good track conditions than the international.
The other Kiwi mare tackling Saturday’s mega-meeting is the Lance Noble-trained Bavella, who clashes with Entriviere in the Sapphire Stakes.
Meanwhile, all the favourites who were in the field for the $200,000 Breeders Stakes at Te Aroha’s abandoned meeting last Saturday have been entered for the rescheduled Group 1 which will be run at Te Rapa on Saturday.