Welcome to our horse racing preview and betting tips for racing at Ascot on Good Friday, April 9th.
Western Australia is the only State that hosts racing on Good Friday, with meetings at Ascot and Kalgoorlie. We've previewed the metro meeting at Ascot in full below, with analysis of every race on the card, along with our tips and best bets for the card!
Ascot Racing Tips: Good Friday, April 10th
Best Bet: Race 2 - (10) Ginger Flyer
Best Value: Race 4 - (6) Whispering Jack
Race 1
Only a small field but it's a competitive little race to kick things off. (6) Platinum Bullet returns from a spell here and if you look back through some of the races she contested in her debut prep, she's got some very strong formlines. She won on debut at Belmont, then ran 2nd to a horse called Rocky Path at her second start. That horse then split Kay Cee and Superstorm at his next start, and Platinum Bullet ran 4th in the same race. She continued to compete against the likes of Kay Cee, Celebrity Queen, Jericho Missile, Tuscan Queen, Sanabreanna et al for the remainder of the campaign. That's seriously hot form for a 3YO No Metro Win race like this, so although she faces a few horses in good form, if she returns an improved horse, she will take a power of beating. (1) River Beau continues to run well in defeat, with back-to-back 2nd placings. He draws the inside here and I fear he may end up a few pairs back on the rail from there. With even luck, he'll go close again. (3) At War started $2.80 first up and should be improved by the run. He gets the blinkers off and the winkers on. (5) Westernize went back in a change of tactics last start and nearly won. From the wide draw he might sit back and let it all unfold and if they overdo it up front, he'll be running home over the top late.
(6) Platinum Bullet
$3.40
Race 2
Two standouts here and one more at value. (10) Ginger Flyer goes on top. She resumed at Pinjarra and led all the way until she was run down late by He's All Mighty, who I think will win again soon. There looks to be very little pace in this race so Ginger Flyer should find the top and prove very hard to run down. (2) Outlaw King ran well for 2nd on debut behind Last Of The Line. He was beaten more than three lengths there but the winner has since come out and won a 3YO Handicap on a Saturday, so that looks a good form reference. He settled back in the field on debut and if he does so again, he's going to be giving Ginger Flyer a big head start. (11) Atlantic Ruler looks the value at double figure odds. She led everywhere bar the post first up at Albany, and then never got a crack at them last start at Ascot in that same race as Outlaw King and Last Of The Line. She was held up the entire straight. The horse that beat her first up has since come out and won his next start to frank the form. The tactics on her will be interesting and it will all be down to how she jumps. She led first up but begun poorly last start so was forced to settle back. Positive jockey change today and at $10 she's worth having something on. The concern is the trainer hasn't had a single horse place from 16 starters at Ascot this season.
Value: (11) Atlantic Ruler $10
Race 3
I was originally keen on Ruby Jean here but she's been scratched. It's hard to split the top three in the market now but I've got the favourite (4) Sowar on top. He charged home last start at Albany and was unlucky the start prior at Pinjarra, where he was held up in the straight and then ran home strongly into 4th once clear. He recorded an 11.53sec final 200m in doing so. He gets the blinkers back on today and hopefully from barrier 5 he isn't too far away. (1) Mercy Prevails led throughout to win over 1400m two starts back at Pinjarra. He then stepped up sharply in company and was well-beaten after missing the start. He'll need to jump better from the inside today or it could be over for him. If he does jump well and lead, he'll take some pegging back. The form out of his first run this prep has turned out very strong and he will find this much easier than last start. (2) Pasaran ran 3rd to Mercy Prevails at Pinjarra. That was over 1400m but I think over 1600m he's capable of turning the tables. He finished the race off really well over 1400m so it was no surprise to see him follow that up with a win over the mile last start. Barrier 9 means he's likely to get back and be chasing them all and just whether he can give the likes of Sowar a start and beat him is the query.
Race 4
This is a low race. Pike jumps on (8) Quintaro here. He's a horse with just one win from 24 starts but he gets his chance to notch up another here. His last two runs have been good - two starts ago he ran home strongly into 3rd and Sowar ran 2nd in that race which isn't a bad formline. Then last start, he drew barrier 11 and came from last to be beaten 1.15L. Draws barrier 5 here, should sit closer, Pike goes on and he looks hard to beat, even with his poor strike rate. Stablemate (4) Sky Five won two starts back and then ran 5th, basically finishing alongside Quintaro last start. Jade McNaught goes back on which is a positive jockey change. (6) Whispering Jack could be a blowout chance at $41. He's been beaten 23L in his first two runs back but he did take a couple of runs to come good last preparation before running 2nd third up. (9) Krakkas ran well last start and can feature.
Value: (6) Whispering Jack $41
Race 5
This race is as low as the last one. (1) Block Of Land started $2.30 first up but ran 2nd last and pulled up with a slow recovery. He ran really well on debut last preparation but has failed to go on with it in his two starts since. He gets the blinkers on for the first time today and has had three weeks to get over that last run. Jarrad Noske sticks with him and if you're into SP profiles, this horse fits the bill. If you took the $2.30 first up you probably have to take the $7.00 on offer today. (2) Point Taken gets the bar plates off his front feet today and ran a promising race last start. He's suited third up from a spell. (7) Wakan Tanka has only won one race from 27 starts but most of the field is like that and he's been around the mark in most starts. (9) Miss Mandy has had no luck recently and gets Brad Parnham taking over from Kristy Bennett.
(1) Block Of Land E/W
$7.00
Race 6
Amid all the terrible races, there's a gem here with the Marjorie Charleson Classic. (1) Flirtini carries the weight here but she can win this first up. She won back-to-back Group 3s last prep before finishing 5th in the G1 Winterbottom Stakes. She was beaten less than half-a-length first up last prep but she won her previous two first up races. Joe Azzopardi has elected to ride her over (3) Angelic Ruler and her trial leading into this was very good. That trial was run in 1:00:31, while the trial of Angelic Ruler was clocked in 1:03:18. Angelic Ruler has won her only start over this track and distance and ran 2nd in the G3 How Now Stakes in Melbourne first up last preparation. She draws better than Flirtini in barrier 4 and William Pike picks up the ride on her with Azzopardi sticking with Flirtini. She'll get a gun run behind the speed and looks hard to beat. (4) Flower Of War isn't a hopeless chance. She has five wins and two 2nds from seven starts over this distance. She's fresh from a five-week spell after failing last start over 1400m. Expect her to come across with Flirtini from the wide gate.
Race 7
This is a very tricky race but I can't for the life of me work out how (1) Ombusman is favourite here. He's got no hope in my opinion, or at least he's no $5.00 chance! The two I'll be backing are (3) Western King at $10 and (8) Altamont at $6.00. Western King did little first up and he didn't come up at all last prep, but he jumps straight from 1400m to 2100m second up here. Pike sticks with him and maybe he just needs that distance at this point in his career. Durrant runners often come to the fore over this sort of distance and he'll get his chance from the draw. Altamont has never run a place at Ascot from nine attempts but there's a lot to like about the way he's come back this prep. He finished off strongly here at Ascot two starts ago when beaten less than a length and he put in another good run at Pinjarra last start, when he came from last to be beaten less than a length. I think at those prices we can back both of those, but I will admit there's very little splitting a big clump of these horses.
Value: (3) Western King $10
Race 8
Two horses I'll be backing here. (1) Yulong Earth was good in his first two starts in WA. He should have won on his WA debut but threw the race away by stopping. He atoned for that at his second start by getting the job done in a Class 1 over 1400m here. Last time we saw him was six weeks ago. He started $4.40 in a similar race to this but he took a dodgey step at the top of the straight and pulled up third last and was lame. He's had two trials since then, Steven Parnham takes over today and if he was to reproduce the form he had prior to last start, he'd probably be the one to beat here. He does have to carry the full 61.5kg though. (6) Starof Bonnie Rose ran fairly first up from a long spell. She should take plenty of improvement from that and she did win second up last campaign. Backing both.
Also backing: (6) Starof Bonnie Rose $6.00
Race 9
Good race to finish the card. (9) Ice Trade deserves favouritism and should be hard to beat here, however there are a number of chances. She comes off a win in the Provincial Champs race at Bunbury last start and the form was franked from that race with Rosebush winning last Wednesday. She'll roll forward from barrier 8 and prove tough to beat. (14) Lil' Red Bikini was well beaten by Son Of A God last start but that horse has won three straight now so it's a pretty decent form line. She draws well in barrier 5 and looks a good bet at $8.50. (6) Star Glitter should be included at big odds. He is another that comes out of a very good form race and he wasn't getting much luck prior to that. (1) Masquerade has claims first up. She hasn't come up in recent preparations but her form going back is good enough for a race like this. (10) Trump This is another with solid form but she's moving stables from Team Williams to Tianna Roberston.
(14) Lil' Red Bikini E/W
$8.50
