Australia: Delacour vs. Eve's Miss rematch in Tuesday handicap

Delacour and Eve’s Miss are distance specialists at minor tracks in Australia, thriving in five-furlong sprints. At that distance, Delacour has won 4 of 7 starts, while Eve’s Miss has won 6 of 21.

They meet for the second time in a five-furlong handicap at Queanbeyan Racecourse on Tuesday, but for the first time on turf. Delacour and Eve’s Miss were first and fifth in a handicap at about 5 1/2 furlongs on the Acton synthetic track at Canberra Racecourse on Aug. 6.

Both have run since that race.

Eve’s Miss returned to win a five-furlong handicap at Wagga Wagga Racecourse on Sept. 18, closing from fourth to prevail by a short neck. A day earlier, Delacour was third in a six-furlong handicap at Queanbeyan, missing by a little less than a half-length after racing in eighth of 10 in the stretch.

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For this race at Queanbeyan, both horses have different riders.

Apprentice jockey Jess Del Frari will ride Eve’s Miss for the first time. Del Frari, who rode a winner at Nowra Racecourse on Friday, began riding in August 2020.

Mathew Cahill rides Delacour for the first time.

Of the two, Delacour may have a slight tactical advantage, showing the ability to race closer to the pace than Eve’s Miss.

Race conditions suit Washington Towers, who won consecutive handicaps at five furlongs on turf at Canberra and Wagga Wagga in March. Following those races, Washington Towers was given a layoff of more than five months, returning to finish third as the 6-5 favorite in a five-furlong handicap at Moruya Racecourse on Sept. 13.

This is a sizable jump in class for Gorush Lightning, who won his last two starts in five-furlong handicaps - at Sapphire Coast in July and at Moruya in August. The tougher competition in this race is a concern, however.

Queanbeyan has an eight-race program beginning at 10:45 p.m. Eastern, or 7:45 p.m. Pacific, on Monday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.