Australia: Coterie favored coming off win in last

Coterie was once so highly regarded that he started in a seven-figure race in Australia, finishing a respectable fourth in the Inglis Sprint at Warwick Farm Racecourse in February 2019.

These days, Coterie runs in handicaps worth a fraction of that prize money, but appears in races that seem to be a better fit for the 5-year-old gelding.

Coterie won a handicap at a mile on Sept. 16 at Warwick Farm to end a four-race losing streak and will be favored to win for the fifth time in his 25-race career in a handicap at 7 3/4 furlongs at Canterbury Park in Sydney on Monday.

Trained by Gerald Ryan and Sterling Alexiou, Coterie is well-suited to the distance. Aside from the recent win, Coterie won a handicap at 7 1/2 furlongs at Kembla Grange in January.

Coterie, who will carry 130 pounds, is part of a field of eight in the fifth race on an eight-race program that begins at 11:25 p.m. Eastern, or 8:25 p.m. Pacific, on Sunday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.

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Monday’s race is the Australian debut of Bebeautiful, a French-bred filly who won three consecutive starts on synthetic tracks in France from January to early March. Now trained by Chris Waller, Bebeautiful was second in two turf race for maidens in October 2019. Bebeautiful is a 3-year-old in the Northern Hemisphere, but a 4-year-old on the Southern Hemisphere breeding calendar.

Waller also starts the Southern Hemisphere 3-year-old Jack the Lad, who has had a fine start to his career with a third in his debut in a maiden race on Sept. 2 at Warwick Farm and a win in a maiden race at seven furlongs there Sept. 16.

Monday’s race is Jack the Lad’s debut against older horses and winners. He will carry 119 pounds, the lowest assignment.

There are two Kentucky-breds in the field who will be longshots – Mount Tabora, who carries top weight of 135.5 pounds, and Occupy, who will carry 130 pounds.

Mount Tabora, by Scat Daddy, has won 3 of 18 starts, but is winless in his last five appearances. Occupy, by Declaration of War, won consecutive starts last December, but is winless in his last five races.