The colts outstripped the fillies in the final lead-up races to the 2025 Golden Slipper while PRIDE OF JENNI showed she is back for a big autumn.
First-up off a bleeding attack and JENNI had her doubters drifting from $2.60 to $4.20 before assuming her customary frontrunning role that saw the mare go through the first 1200m around 8L above standard. She basically maintained that pace right to the line with her last 200m only 0.5L below standard. The question now becomes do they go to an Australian Cup giving her just two weeks to recover. Or do they come to Sydney to defend her crown in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes in what would be a mouth-watering clash with VIA SISTINA.
At the other end of the spectrum we had the two-year-olds round out their Golden Slipper preparation up at Rosehill.
All 10 winners were in lanes 7 to 14 meaning you had to be off rail in the straight, something not all two-year-olds are comfortable with.
SKYHOOK’s winning time in the Pago Pago Stakes was fractionally faster than MEMO in the Magic Night Stakes but what made the race vastly superior was the fact if you stopped the vision at the halfway (600m) the girls had a 5L head start on the boys.
TEMPTED, winner of the Reisling Stakes, has the highest rated last start performance of any filly heading into the big one. In fact, the Reisling Stakes is the only filly lead-up to rate higher than the colts event run on the same day.
Interestingly, the Resiling has been the best guide to the Slipper.
If you’d like to register for a Runner-by-Runner Ratings Guide to the 2025 Golden Slipper click here.
On the home front we had 3 winners from 8 runners last week.
It kicked off with CARTWHEELS again showing she doesn’t seem to have the same dash at 1400m. Yes, she won at the trip last year but on that occasion they went 7L below standard through the first 800m at Eagle Farm.
They went 2.5L below standard early last Wednesday at Eagle Farm yet her last 200m was well below standard and close to the slowest of the race.
Things went up a notch at Kembla on Friday, where OTONO made it 2 in a row and 3 from her last 4. You might recall we suggested to follow her after clocking the best last 200m of the day at her run prior at Wyong. She is on a serious upward trajectory and her overall time here was only 0.8 slower than the Kembla Grange Classic, which is pretty good for a BM64 versus a G3.
TINTAURA made her debut at Eagle Farm on Saturday and might be one we can get a price on at some stage this prep. She is out of Qld Oaks winner TINTO and no doubt will appreciate more ground than the 1200m she copped here. The winning time was bang on average for 3YO Maidens but she was 5L off them at the halfway mark and needs a faster tempo if she’s going to figure in the finish of these shorter races. Her 5th placing beaten just 3.2L was a sound debut given the circumstances.
HANG FIVE again struggled with the 1400m but you can’t blame the distance entirely. He was disappointing in the BM78 contest. Perhaps a freshen-up and back in trip might spark some improvement?
The money was right when they smacked HEYOKA in betting before she landed the plunge beating the BM65 standard by more than 5L. She sat on a hot speed and kept going. Her winning time was nearly 1 second faster than the BM78 HANG FIVE ran in.
Unfortunately, the plunge didn’t land with TAKE A BOW, who was 4th in the 3YO BM70. The winner ran standard time and TAKE A BOW’s last 200m wasn’t overly strong but she didn’t have a great deal of room in the straight and I note she’s yet to produce a rating on dry ground – perhaps one for the wetter months?
TOWN CRIER is a real trier now with 5 wins from 13 starts courtesy of his Class 4 (1200m) victory at the Gold Coast. He settled 3rd in the run and really toughed it out with 60kg on his back clocking the second fastest last 200m of the day.
Nic Ashman is a form expert who has developed his own times rating system to assess races. He is the host of The Beaten Favourite podcast and appears on several other racing media outlets.