Australia: Spirit Ridge brings experience over the track to Wagga Wagga Gold Cup
Of the 15 runners in Friday’s Wagga Wagga Gold Cup at the racecourse of the same name in Australia, two starters have experience over the track – the outsider Roman, and the intriguing longshot Spirit Ridge, who was second in the same race last year.
Run at 1 1/4 miles, the Wagga Wagga Gold Cup is a handicap without a heavy favorite. Course experience could be an asset for Spirit Ridge, who has a pedigree with ties to American racing.
Trained by Mark Newnham, the 7-year-old Spirit Ridge is out of Tates Creek, who won the Grade 2 Diana Handicap, Grade 1 Gamely, and Grade 1 Yellow Ribbon Stakes while trained by the late Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel.
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Spirit Ridge has won 6 of 25 starts in a career that began in England in 2018. Spirit Ridge was sent to Australia in 2020 and won three stakes there in 2020 and 2021. Spirit Ridge is winless in three starts this year, the most recent of which was a fourth-place finish by 2 1/2 lengths in the Group 3 Easter Cup at Caulfield Racecourse in Melbourne on April 16, his eighth consecutive start in a group stakes.
In the 2021 Wagga Wagga Gold Cup, Spirit Ridge was beaten less than a half-length. Spirit Ridge has won 2 of 10 starts at 1 1/4 miles.
The Wagga Wagga Gold Cup field is led by Ain’tnodeeldun, who will be a slight favorite over Aleas, Brutality, Five Kingdom, Irish Sequel and Numerian. Ain’tnodeeldun was 7-2 in early betting on Wednesday.
Ain’tnodeeldun was second by 5 1/2 lengths in a race at 1 1/4 miles on April 23 restricted to horses bred in the Australian state of Victoria, his first start at the distance. Trained by Anthony and Sam Freedman, Ain’tnodeeldun was a two-time stakes winner in 2020 but is winless in three starts this year after missing 2021.
Wagga Wagga has an eight-race program beginning at 10:35 p.m. Eastern or 7:35 p.m. Pacific on Thursday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.