See ya Sydney. See ya Melbourne. Hello Brisvegas! Doomben Racecourse is where the best racing action is at this weekend and with the XXXX Brewery just around the corner, there’s plenty to get excited about on and off the turf in the Sunshine State on Saturday.
We’ve witnessed some incredible things over the spring racing season.
Waller’s superstar mare Winx taking out the Cox Plate, Prince Of Penzance scoring the Melbourne Cup upset at 101/1 and ladies taking a trackside piss more times than I said the F-word watching the aforementioned Prince storm home in the famous Flemington Race 7.
So, now what?
Along with the cricket and golf the racing isn’t dead just yet.
We move up the coast to Brisbane and Doomben Racecourse for the first leg of the Brisbane Summer Racing Series Triple Crown on Saturday with the running of the $200,000 Group 3 Channel 7 George Moore Stakes (1200m).
A talented field of sprinters are set to line-up in this time-honoured handicap including five for local horseman Tony Gollan who is doing a Waller and dominating a field in his home state.
It’s a wide open betting affair with more chances in the bookies’ eyes than there are turkeys on tables in the States this week – #Thanksgiving.
Heading the early markets is Gollan’s Group 1 winner Temple Of Boom out to bring the boom home after a couple of interstate runs in August.
His first was a solid Missile Stakes third in Sydney but last time out at Caulfield he beat home just one other runner crossing 14th to a Waller runner, Boban, in the Group 1 Memsie Stakes (1400m).
Can he atone for that run at Doomben? The odds suggest he will but he is zero-from-12 at Doomben and the veteran nine-year-old hasn’t won a race since April last year.
He lines up for his 62nd career run on the weekend, an effort as impressive as Holm’s smashing of the now out-of-action Rousey in the UFC the other week, but whether he can break the drought is another matter.
At equal odds for second are Gollan’s flying seven-year-old Didntcostalot who might have been a bargain buy at $3k but has proved a nice purchase amassing over $385k to date and the Kelly Schweida-trained mare Miss Cover Girl.
Didntcostalot has won three of his past four starts, all of those being at Doomben to give him a gun record at the track (5-3-1-1).
He’s up in class but hey, sometimes aiming high pays off. Think Andy Murray scoring ace with Kim Sears or in the world of rock ‘n’ roll Ronnie Woods getting exactly what he wants with Sally Humphreys who is 31 years his junior – #StartMeUp.
Representing the female gallopers, four-year-old Monashee Mountain mare Miss Cover Girl also thrives at Doomben (9-2-2-2) and comes off good form including her Group 3 third at Randwick over this distance.
She is drawn wide with the outside alley however giving Glen Colless a bit of work to do from the gate.
If the Boom doesn’t fire, Didntcostalot fails to live up to the class and Miss Cover Girl doesn’t get any cover then the next best to back look to be Fontelina and Architect.
Hall of Famer Jim “The Pumper” Cassidy gets the rails run from barrier one aboard Gollan’s multiple Group 2 winner Fontelina who should be on the improve off a couple of unplaced interstate runs against some nice types.
Architect is also drawn a treat in six, the local Bel Esprit gelding having his 52nd start and 31st at the track on the back of a third to fellow George Moore hope Didntcostalot.
What about the value we hear the tight asses call? At juicy double figures you’ll find Feltre prepared by Eagle Farm’s Lynn Tipper.
This Show A Heart five-year-old certainly has lots of heart when it comes to brave runs and has run top two in all but one of his past 11 runs.
He has had four starts for two wins and two seconds at Doomben and the second at the track and distance last time out behind Charge Account was full of merit, so don’t discount.
Now is the time to get on board with what’s on offer in Brisbane over the coming months and bank a few bucks at Doomben to doll out on some new Dick Togs – #WhatWeWearDownUnder.
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