Australia: Casino Lord returns home to Tamworth

Casino Lord was overmatched in two group-level sprints in Australia in the first half of September at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney.

He finished seventh of eight in the Group 3 Concorde Stakes on Sept. 2, and last of 12 in the Group 2 The Shorts Stakes two weeks later, racing against some of the country’s leading sprinters.

Casino Lord is trained by Cody Morgan at Tamworth Racecourse, a venue that has been the location of four of the 6-year-old gelding’s five career wins. A return to racing at home can help Casino Lord end a five-race losing streak since February in a handicap at five furlongs at Tamworth on Thursday evening.

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Casino Lord, who will be ridden by Anna Roper, was the 2-1 favorite in early betting as of Wednesday morning and is part of a field of 10 that includes contenders such as I’m Not Slew, Limited Reality, and Super Extreme. They were all 7-2 on Wednesday.

Weights could play a role in the outcome. Casino Lord will carry 134.4 pounds, slightly less than topweight Toro Toro at 140 pounds, but much less than his three other leading rivals at 121.

I’m Not Slew, a winner of 4 of 13 starts, had a two-race winning streak end with a one-length loss in a five-furlong handicap at Muswellbrook on Sept. 12. I’m Not Slew is expected to be part of the pace at Tamworth.

Limited Reality is harder to assess. He won his first three starts in 2021, but was winless in four starts last year. The race at Tamworth will be the first for Limited Reality since December. He finished first of nine in a five-furlong training race from the gate at Tamworth on Sept. 25.

Super Extreme was ninth by 3 3/4 lengths in a tough, and lucrative, handicap at five furlongs at Randwick on Sept. 16 in his first start since May and faces an easier field at Tamworth.

Tamworth has an eight-race program beginning at 10:15 p.m. Eastern or 7:15 p.m. Pacific. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.

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