Australia: Jungle Book gets weight break with apprentice rider

Jungle Book and apprentice jockey Georgina McDonnell are a good partnership at this stage of the 4-year-old Australian-bred gelding’s career.

Jungle Book has won his last two starts, including a handicap at 1 1/4 miles at Wagga Wagga Racecourse on June 5. With the wins, Jungle Book has a higher official handicap rating, which equates to higher weight assignments.

McDonnell’s apprentice claim will give Jungle Book a much-appreciated break in the weights in a handicap at 1 1/4 miles at Wagga Wagga on Sunday.

Trained by Trevor Sutherland, who is based at Wagga Wagga, Jungle Book will carry 126.7 pounds instead of the original assignment of 133 pounds. With that, Jungle Book has a lower weight than four of his eight rivals.

Jungle Book has won 6 of 36 starts. In the June 5 race, Jungle Book closed from ninth in a field of 12 to win by 1 1/2 lengths with McDonnell aboard for the first time.

Willy White Socks, a winner of 11 of 90 starts who is trained by Sutherland, was third in that race and later sixth in a handicap at a mile at Albury on Monday. A closer, Willy White Socks will have his 40th career start at Wagga Wagga on Sunday.

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Suburbia, who has inherited top weight of 132 pounds, will race at 1 1/4 miles for the first time Sunday. Suburbia won consecutive starts at seven furlongs in February and March and has been second or third in his last five races.

Aside from Jungle Book, Run Hoff Run is the only one with a win in his last start. Run Hoff Run won a seven-furlong handicap at tiny Narrandera Racecourse on June 13, but was fifth and 10th behind Jungle Book on May 30 and June 5.

First post time at Wagga Wagga is 10:50 p.m. Eastern, or 7:50 p.m. Pacific, on Saturday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.