Australia: Recent winners Amica, Secretly Awesome meet in handicap at Royal Randwick

On consecutive days earlier this month, Amica and Secretly Awesome won handicaps at 1 1/8 miles in Australia by less than a length.

For Amica, a 4-year-old Australian-bred mare, a win on the Kensington course at Royal Randwick on Dec. 4 was her second in three starts and fourth of her 10-race career. A day later at Newcastle, Secretly Awesome won for the third time in his sixth career start, his first victory since May.

Amica and Secretly Awesome meet for the first time on Thursday in a handicap at 1 1/8 miles on the Kensington course. They are part of a field that will have a safety limit of 10 starters, but drew 14 entries.

Montserrat, second to Amica on Dec. 4, and Lando Bay, who has run in shorter races in recent starts, are two other notable contenders.

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Amica, trained by the partnership of Gerald Ryan and Sterling Alexiou, is a stalker who has drawn the rail. Amica carried 124.5 pounds on Dec. 4, but will carry 129 in this race, which is at the same handicap class level.

Secretly Awesome ran against a lower-quality field at Newcastle and won despite carrying 134.4 pounds. A 4-year-old Southern Hemisphere gelding, he has been assigned 131 pounds against this better group of rivals.

Rockabill, a recent import from Ireland, will carry topweight of 134.4 pounds in his first start since June 2019. Rockabill is rated as a longshot on Thursday, which is understandable considering the lengthy gap between starts.

In Ireland, Rockabill won 2 of 12 starts when trained by Joseph O’Brien. Rockabill was third in his final three starts in Ireland, all handicap races at 1 1/4 miles to 1 5/8 miles. Kris Lees is the new trainer of Rockabill.

Montserrat may go favored, a slight choice over Amica and Secretly Awesome.

Montserrat was beaten three-quarters of a length by Amica on Dec. 4, and lost a handicap at 1 1/8 miles by about a head at Rosehill Gardens on Nov. 20. A winner of 2 of 13 starts, Montserrat often sets the pace.

The seven-race program on the Kensington course begins at 11:25 p.m. Eastern, or 8:25 p.m. Pacific, on Wednesday. Wagering and viewing is available through DRFBets.com.