Racing remains at Caulfield for a second consecutive week, with the mares taking centre stage in the Group 3 Bellmaine Stakes. I hold a slight lean toward Aviatress, though not with enough conviction to part with mine.
And in the Chairman’s Stakes, I’ve labelled Big Sky overrated leading into the Blue Diamond. I was underwhelmed by the time he ran on debut; however, the depth of the race drops away sharply beyond him, leaving him hard to oppose.
That said, the program still has its opportunities, with two other races standing out as more appealing wagering propositions, one in Race 5, the other in Race 8.
Race five on the program is headlined by Jenni Gone Bonkers and Our Chief, who have been stalwarts of the middle-distance three-year-old division over the last few months. They’ve not set the clock alight by any means, despite having won their share of races, and their place atop this division seems extremely vulnerable.
The runner I’ve decided upon to beat the favoured two is Komito, a lightly raced son of Lope De Vega from a Frankel mare. The clock was kind at Seymour, running fast overall time and an exceptional concluding 400 metres. Nine furlongs will only improve him, and he’s shown that he’s adept on a fast track.
The bar is not set particularly high, and he is already operating at the level required to win a race of this quality; thus, I’m expecting him to clear this field and move on to better races than this. A race such as the South Australian Derby may be on the cards if he continues his ascendency through the grades.
He’s been well supported since betting commenced on Wednesday afternoon; even still, the current 4/1 widely available is more than acceptable.
Gallant Son returned to racing at Flemington a fortnight ago, resuming over five furlongs and doing plenty right to score. He carried topweight, absorbed pressure throughout, and repelled the late challenge of Along The River over what is an unsuitable distance.
He’s clearly fast, though perhaps not a five-furlong horse, and the fact he was able to win there suggests to me that he’s returned a better horse than the one we last saw in the autumn.
From my understanding, he’s had his share of injuries across his brief career, but his resuming run suggests that Moody may have him well enough physically to extract the best of him this preparation.
He’s always hinted at an elite level of ability. He was excellent in the HKJC World Pool Sprint Classic, finishing second to the high-class New Zealand sprinter Alabama Lass, before later starting a pronounced favourite over subsequent Group 1 winner Reserve Bank.
The old adage of a group horse in a handicap certainly applies, and at better than 2/1 he’s tremendous value. I’ve marked him closer to $2.60.
