Tom Wood:
R1: 11-4-5-7
R2: 2-6-5-7
R3: 2-1-6-3
R4: 7-9-10-6
R5: 4-7-3-1
R6: 11-6-9-5
R7: 6-3-1-7
R8: 7-9-10-1
R9: 4-8-3-6
BEST: R5 N4 YELLOWFIN (WIN)
VALUE: R2 N2 ACA POWER (EW)
PLAY: R9 QQP 3,4,8
Paul Lally:
R1: 11-7-5-4
R2: 5-6-1-11
R3: 11-1-2-14
R4: 7-4--12-13
R5: 4-7-2-1
R6: 11-10-9-6
R7: 3-6-2-1
R8: 9-7-1-3
R9: 1-3-8-4
In New Zealand and Hong Kong, the 4-year-old gelding Money Catcher has been second or third in five stakes in 13 starts, all on turf.
His career will shift in a slightly different direction when Money Catcher starts on dirt for the first time on the infield course in the featured finale at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong on Wednesday.
Money Catcher has finished first twice in turf races, but was disqualified from a race in New Zealand in October 2020. He followed with two second-place finishes, including the Group 2 Auckland Guineas at a mile.
Were it not for a fourth-place finish in a handicap at Belmont Racecourse in Perth, Australia, in 2019, Showmanship would have an unbeaten record in eight starts in advance of Wednesday’s $140,800 Wangoom Handicap at Warrnambool Racecourse.
As it is, Showmanship has an active six-race winning streak that began in May 2020 and includes his stakes debut in the Bendigo Bank Stakes at six furlongs at Moonee Valley Racecourse in Melbourne in September 2020.
The jockey James Doyle never had won a Classic race before Saturday, while young trainer George Boughey hadn’t won one before Sunday, but when Cachet went wire to wire in the English 1,000 Guineas on Sunday at Newmarket it gave Doyle his second Classic and Boughey his first.
In his 50-race career in Australia, Bit of a Lad has won eight times, with his most lucrative win coming in the $105,500 Brierly Chase at Warrnambool Racecourse west of Melbourne in April 2019.
The 2019 season was the last year Warrnambool had a full crowd at its popular three-day spring meeting. The audiences are back at Warrnambool this week from Tuesday through Thursday and so is the 8-year-old Bit of a Lad in the Brierly Chase at about 2 1/8 miles, now worth $123,600.
Bulsara will have a familiar cast of rivals when the Australian-bred 2-year-old makes his second start in less than two weeks in a handicap at 6 3/4 furlongs at Ipswich Racecourse near Brisbane, Australia on Monday.
On April 20, Bulsara won for the first time in his second career start in a six-furlong handicap at Ipswich as a 13-1 outsider, closing from fifth in a field of eight to win by a neck. Bulsara beat Uncommon Valour and Sailor’s Secret, who were second and third and are part of Monday’s race at Ipswich.
Godolphin and trainer Charlie Appleby for months had been expected to win the 2000 Guineas on Saturday at Newmarket Racecourse in England. They did – just not with the horse presumed to be their best chance.
Guineas favorite Native Trail turned in a good enough performance Saturday – just not good enough to beat his stablemate, Coroebus, who simply had a better turn of foot than Native Trail and won the Guineas by three-quarters of a length.
Paul Lally:
R1: 7-6-5-4
R2: 7-3-1-10
R3: 2-4-3
R4: 3-4-1-2
R5: 2-1-8-4
R6: 2-11-3-4
R7: 1-11-12-5
R8: 8-1-5-7
R9: 11-2-10-7
R10: 1-3-4-2
R11: 12-1-3-2
Best Bet R6 N2 Massive Action
Longshot R8 N8 Victory Park
Play Race8 QQP 1-5-8
Tom Wood:
R1: 7-4-1-6
R2: 3-7-5-10
R3: 2-1-3-5
R4: 3-4-1-2
R5: 2-1-8-5
R6: 2-3-11-7
R7: 11-10-1-12
R8: 1-5-2-7
R9: 7-2-1–6
Short fields are rare in Hong Kong racing, but Sunday’s Group 3, $370,000 Queen Mother Memorial Cup Handicap at Sha Tin lured only five entrants.
There’s a reason for the lack of interest: The Queen Mother Memorial is run over 2,400-meters, about 1 1/2 miles, and there just aren’t true many 1 1/2-mile horses in Hong Kong.