Corbulo makes Australian debut in Sandown handicap

From April to August of last year, Corbulo won four times in England at distances ranging from a mile at Bath Racecourse to 1 5/16 miles at Chester Racecourse.

The versatility could serve Corbulo well when he has his Australian debut in a handicap at 1 1/8 miles at Sandown Racecourse in Melbourne on Wednesday.

Corbulo has not raced since he finished fourth by 1 3/4 lengths in a handicap on the synthetic track at Lingfield Park near London in late August.

Now trained by Jason Warren and Dean Krongold, Corbulo has had one schooling race from the gate, or barrier trial, in preparation for his Australian debut, finishing third of seven, beaten 3 1/4 lengths by Hush Writer at 7 3/4 furlongs at the Cranbourne training center on Feb. 7. Hush Writer was a Group 3 winner in Australia in 2019.

Corbulo is part of a field of 10 in the seventh race on an eight-race program that begins at 11:05 p.m. Eastern, or 8:05 p.m. Pacific, on Tuesday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.

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Corbulo’s 2021 form in England makes him attractive at Sandown, if he can immediately handle racing on a new continent. Jockey Matthew Cartwright has the mount on Corbulo, who has won 4 of 10 starts.

The role of favorite will go to Yukon, a 4-year-old who has won 3 of 13 starts, but is winless in his last five races since August. Yukon was second by 2 3/4 lengths in a handicap at 1 1/8 miles on the infield Kensington course at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney on Feb. 16. Yukon has tactical speed, which should help jockey Jye McNeil, who rides the gelding for the first time.

Takumi is a longshot to follow, even though the 6-year-old gelding is winless in his last 15 starts. Takumi was second in the Colac Cup at 1 1/4 miles at Colac Racecourse on Feb. 11, closing from last in a field of seven to be closest at the finish. He is a threat from off the pace at Sandown, too.