Golden Slipper preview and betting guide

Vancouver

   The world's richest two-year-old race, the Golden Slipper, is one of five Group 1 races on a super day of racing at Rosehill on Saturday.

   Here's Sportal's betting guide, with odds courtesy of Sportsbet.

   Sportsbet have a great special on the first four races at Rosehill. Place a win or each way bet on any of those races, and if your horse finishes second or third, you get refunded your bet up to $100. That's on your first bet only. So we'll target races 3 and 4 for some money-back action if we can't jag the winner.

   All times AEDT.

1.50pm Rosehill Race 3

The Sebring (Listed 3yo) 1200m

BET: 8 Princefamous

This bloke is three from three, and may be very good indeed. His three wins have been in far weaker races. But he's done what good horses do, and stepped up in grade effortlessly, suggesting he can win far better races. His trainers, the Snowdens, know how to effectively place a horse, and I'd suggest this has been a long-range plan to target this. Like him a lot.

DANGER: 7 Washington Heights

Still a maiden, and the danger is he's a "gunna" type who teases but doesn't win. However, he's been competitive behind some really good horses in better races than this and he's a colt with blinkers going on for the first time. That should make him concentrate on racing rather than the ladies.

 

2.30pm Rosehill Race 4

Ranvet Stakes (Group 1) 2000m

BET: 3 He's Your Man

I know Contributer has beaten him at two runs this prep, but he's lost nothing in comparison as both runs have been outstanding. The latest he jumped from the car park and was wide all the way, and not beaten too badly by Contributer and Hartnell at Group 1 level. Hartnell has since won. Looks ready to peak third-up here. He's previously a third-up winner at this track and distance, and he's a Group 1 winner. Trainer Chris Waller also gave him an easy trial last week, suggesting this is a target race.

DANGER: 6 Silent Achiever

Just behind the placegetters in the Contributer-He's Your Man Group 1 race last start and it was a pearler of a run. She won both this race and The BMW at Group 1 at this track last year, so clearly likes Rosehill. Always thereabouts, and while we don't know how the Japanese and Hong Kong visitor will shape up, we know how good this mare is.

 

4.30pm Rosehill Race 7

Golden Slipper (Group 1 2yo) 1200m

BET: 5 Exosphere

Profiles like a Golden Slipper winner as we wrote here this week. His two wins this preparation have been outstanding, settling back and powering home for impressive victories. A fast-run Slipper should allow him to do the same, and jockey James McDonald should be able to settle him in a great spot from the barrier. Godolphin have said he's the No.1 from their stable, and with three other runners in the race, they might be able to control things and perhaps set it up for this bloke to finish best.

DANGER: 2 Headwater

His run behind Slipper favourite Vancouver last start wasn't as plain as it looked, and I figure he may have been in the wrong part of the track that day. Go on his awesome previous start win, which rocketed him into Slipper favouritism just a few weeks ago. Now you can get double figures. While Vancouver is clearly very good, he'll have to defy history to win the race as only two horses in the past 20 years have won the Slipper from wider than barrier 11.

  

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