Australia: Absolute Artie in strong form for Rockhampton Cup

The red-hot Absolute Artie, winner of three of his last five starts, will run in the richest race of his career as the favorite in Friday’s $59,500 Rockhampton Cup in Australia.

Absolute Artie was 5-2 in early betting on Wednesday to win the one-mile Rockhampton Cup on a course the 4-year-old Australian-bred gelding knows well. Absolute Artie has won 8 of 19 starts in his career. At Rockhampton, he has won 5 of 7 starts, including his last two races – a handicap at 7 1/2 furlongs on June 23 and a one-mile handicap July 7.

The Rockhampton Cup is the eighth race on a nine-race program that begins at 10:07 p.m. Eastern, or 7:07 p.m. Pacific, on Thursday, Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.

Rockhampton Racecourse is located on the Australian East Coast, well north of Brisbane.

Absolute Artie, trained by Ricky Vale, will be part of a field of 16 and is expected to set the pace, a style that has worked well of late. Against a lesser field on July 7, Absolute Artie was 3-5. He led throughout and won by 1 1/2 lengths over Hi Harry, who will be a longshot in the Rockhampton Cup.

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The Rockhampton Cup is run as a handicap. Absolute Artie will carry 122.3 pounds, much lower than topweight Spectroscope at 132 pounds. A rare Kentucky-bred racing in Australia, the 7-year-old Spectroscope was seventh of nine in the listed Spear Chief Handicap at 6 3/4 furlongs at Doomben Racecourse on June 27 in his first start since February.

Spectroscope is winless in 25 starts since a Group 3 win in 2017, but was a game second by about a neck in a one-mile handicap at Eagle Farm Racecourse in February.

The timing of the Rockhampton Cup could be beneficial for Bargannon, a seven-time winner who will carry 122.3 pounds. Bargannon was fifth in the Spear Chief Handicap in his first start since November and was a winner at a mile last October.