With two wins in her first three races, Alchermes is off to a fine start and could be the beneficiary of a low weight assignment in a handicap at 7 1/2 furlongs on Thursday at Kembla Grange Racecourse in Australia.

Alchermes, trained by Ron Quinton, was third in her debut in late February before winning consecutive starts in a maiden race at six furlongs on March 14 and a handicap at seven furlongs on April 7 at Kembla Grange. In both races, Alchermes closed from off the pace, winning her most recent start by a half-length under jockey Shaun Guymer, who has the mount Thursday.

Dances With Dragon beat Enrichment by a head while giving him seven pounds in a Class 2 handicap over 1,800 meters on April 15 at Happy Valley and will try to handle him again giving even more weight over a shorter trip in the featured ninth race Wednesday at Happy Valley.

A bold front-running style has put Inverloch in the best form of his career in recent months and given the 6-year-old gelding a topweight assignment in Wednesday’s $144,225 Warrnambool Cup at the racecourse of the same name in southern Australia.

Inverloch, a 6-year-old Irish-bred gelding, has won two of his last four starts, including the Group 3 Easter Cup at 1 1/4 miles on April 11 at Caulfield Racecourse. Inverloch was the 3-1 favorite in the $82,500 Easter Cup and held off a threat from Midterm to win by a head.

The May carnival at Warrnambool Racecourse typically unfolds over three days before large enthusiastic crowds in the tiny coastal town in southern Australia.

This week, the festival goes forward for a two-day racing week on Tuesday and Wednesday without spectators because of the coronavirus outbreak.

While the atmosphere will be remarkably different, there are still plenty of top-class races, notably a strong jump racing program Tuesday. The leading race is the $201,915 Grand Annual Steeplechase at 3 7/16 miles, or 5,500 meters, which drew a field of eight.

Fierement won the springtime running of the Grade 1 Tenno Sho at Kyoto Racecourse in Japan on Sunday for the second consecutive year, but only by a nose over 63-1 Stiffelio.

Fierement, the even-money favorite, closed from seventh in a field of 14 to take the lead in the final strides under jockey Christophe Lemaire.

Tom Wood:

R1:      3 – 2 – 4 – 5

R2:      2 – 5 – 1 – 7

R3:      5 – 2 – 1 – 4

R4:      8 – 6 – 5 – 4
R5:      13 – 8 – 2 – 11

R6:      4 – 1 – 2 – 10

R7:      1 – 7 – 5 – 8

R8:      5 – 8 – 6 – 3

R9:      9 – 12 – 11 – 14

R10:    2 – 6 – 1 – 7

R11:    5 – 1 – 8 – 13

BEST:      R7 – 1 MONSTER KAKA (EW)

VALUE:  R2 – 2 E GENERATION

PLAY:     R11 - TRIO 5 > 1,8,10,13

Dynamic Thinker was unlucky not to win for a second time in his career last November and December in the weeks following a victory in a maiden race at Gold Coast Racecourse in Australia.

Dynamic Thinker was beaten a nose on Nov. 21 and by a head on Dec. 21 before finishing last of 10 at 100-1 in the Group 3 Rogue Stakes at Eagle Farm Racecourse on Dec. 28. He was rested through the Australian summer and early fall leading to a comeback on Monday in a minor handicap at Ipswich Racecourse southwest of Brisbane.

A year ago, Fierement won the springtime running of the Grade 1 Tenno Sho at Kyoto Racecourse in Japan after a three-month layoff.

Sunday, Fierement, now a 5-year-old, will try to win the same two-mile race after a layoff of more than four months.

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A one-mile race at Bendigo Racecourse in Australia is run around one turn on a left-handed track, a layout familiar to American racing fans.

The long run to the turn in such a race could help Analytica, who starts from post 11 in a field of 12 in a handicap at that distance on Sunday. Analytica, a 4-year-old Southern Hemisphere gelding trained by Patrick Payne, is the only entrant with a win in his last start.

SHA TIN SELECTIONS
(Sunday, May 3, 2020)