The weekend wrap up

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Good to see we have found some good form in recent weeks and no coincidence it coincides with punting at the Gold Coast and Doomben. Maps are important at those places and I just find it so much easier to find winners than EF. Very selfish of me but I’d love all Brisbane racing to be Doomben Saturday’s and EF Wednesday haha.

We ended up with four winners including the best bet and a $1200+ Quaddie from a $60 outlay on the RACING.COM preview so hopefully we helped in some way to your Saturday punting. 

Super effort from Andrew Mallyon riding the first three winners on the card and Jimmy Byrne riding a double later. For a couple of years I felt our jock levels were below standard but Rodd, Mallyon and Thompson arriving have really boosted that top tier. 

Race 1:

Happy to follow the trifecta here. Nothing wrong with any of them. RUBIQUITOUS is still a little green and I believe that probably cost him the race but he will improve off the outing. MYSTIC GEM got the box seat, did everything right and she looks above average. HAMLET VON SNITZEL debuted in a good Saturday race and kept finding in the straight. He will be winning his fair share of races.

Follow: Those three

 

Race 2:

Looked a two horse race and that’s how it panned out. Byrne back onto PROMETHEUS and he jumped well to get a great run in transit after SPECTROSCOPE shot 5L in front mid-race. Mallyon had to go wide before the corner but LIGULATE just kept lifting to run down PROMETHEUS late and he won fair and square,

 

Race 3:

I didn’t like this race at all and it was always going to be a race where there was nothing to follow as we know all their levels, there isn’t any on the way up. A great Mallyon ride got GUNNOBE home and HAIL MANHATTAN ticked the mile box. I thought his run was very good and at least he is a consistent type. Rodd is getting on horses and just adding a length or so to them, they just seem to run for him. I just don’t look at SMART METEOR as a winning hope ever anymore. He’s turned into one of the great pack chasers and if he ever wins again I’m happy to not be on. He has to find weaker races like the one he was scratched from earlier in the week. There may not be one weak enough.

SACK: SMART METEOR (if you haven’t already)

 

Race 4:

Wowee. Don’t tell my bride how well a gelding operation can work. GARIBALDI is a dead set new horse. His EF win was excellent but this may have been better. Rodd was forced to go a little early and wide but he didn’t push the button until he had to and GARIBALDI just picked them up and spat them out. Plenty of upside left yet. GOOD CHAT did what GOOD CHAT does, ran well and a big gap back to the 3rd horse. 

FOLLOW: GARIBALDI

 

Race 5:

Sometimes you just have to back your opinion and anyone that reads my stuff or listens to Chris Nelson and I on the Betfair Edge each Saturday would know how much I think of BATANGA’S ENTRY and it’s crazy they put up $8 early markets. He has a beautiful action and the last run was a forgive. When the tempo slowed he again got his head up but Byrne just eased him out and got him comfortable which was a winning move. It wasn’t bad to be in that lane and it was the right part of the straight he got to. I have no doubt he will continue to get better next prep also. I had HE KNOWS as the ‘lay of the day’ and it ran a lot better than I expected hitting the line well late to grab 2nd. CRIMINAL DEFENCE was on the wrong part of the track but is flying and just needs 1300-1400m on a bigger track now. NOTE: TICK TOCK BOOM was lame in both fore legs.

FOLLOW: BATANGAS ENTRY and CRIMINAL DEFENCE

 

Race 6:

I didn’t like NICCI’S SPIRIT that much but ‘The Prophet’ did and I felt she ran really well. Got back and found the line really well. Will strip fitter and 1400m on a big track looks ideal 3rd up. BLEU ZEBRA got a good lead and ride and got the job done. Keeps improving and a decent win here. NO LAUGHING MATTER was very costly for me and looked very plain! Betfair late said she’d run like that though. MICROWAVE JENNY is better than we have seen her last couple and will be a better horse next prep.

FOLLOW: NICCI’S SPIRIT

 

Race 7:

Good luck ever following DISSOLUTION. Yes we got him in the Quaddie at $19 to give us a big dividend but it was more a speck selection as his best is very good but he mixes his form. He was dominant here and NORTH AFRIKA rock solid again. MANGIONE loomed and peaked. Also don’t think he’s a 2000m horse. 1800m next start and he might be ready. Just a QLD staying race….

 

Race 8:

Another race where the best horse won but I have to admit I had the heart in the mouth at the top of the straight! Have always said SOCIALISING is a blacktype mare when it all comes together and she showed some class here. It was the ride of the day for mine. At the 800m it got tight and Byrne eased, went to the fence and then got off the fence to the fast lane in the straight. It was a 12/10. SHE ZA BOSS blew in the market but she was very good attacking the line. YOU MAKE ME SMILE might have been in inferior ground and was a very good fresh run to just be nailed on the line. 

FOLLOW: SOCIALISING and SHE ZA BOSS

 

Race 9:

ROMAN AUREUS looked really well placed and was 3/3 this track/trip before this race. He mapped exactly where we thought but the leaders looked like they’d be hard to run down on the corner. Absolutely everything went right and when he hit the lead he looked home for all money until the fav DESERT LORD savaged the line and it was as close to a dead heat as you’ll see. Both excellent runs. ENTERPRISE PRINE was good but forced to wrong spot in the straight while JOYMAKER hit the line hard late also.