Victoria Derby Day is without question the best day of racing (as a whole) on the Australian horse racing calendar. This year with TopBetta's $200,000.00 fantasy betting tournament it just got even more exciting!
There is four Group 1's on at Flemington this Saturday but the feature race is the Victoria Derby. A stallion making race for young colts run over the staying distance of 2500m. The race has been won by some of the greats of the turf including Tulloch (1957), Phar Lap (1929) and Dulcify (1978). In recent years we've had the likes of Tarzino, Preferment, Efficient and Elvstroem all reign supreme on the first day of the Cup Carnival.
See below for our preview of the 2016 edition of the Victoria Derby!
The Field
*Field information is supplied Racing Australia *
The Speed Map
*Speed map software supplied by Punters*
It's very hard to sort this lot out because the race is being run over 2500m and there's some question marks on whether some runners will stay the trip out so we may see some different tactics from horses that are usually more prominent during the race. Especially those that have drawn wide gates, all except Highlad will likely drop back in the field to try and get some cover to conserve energy. Highlad's connections have indicated they are going forward and he should end up either outside the lead or just in behind. The favourite Sacred Elixir will be put to sleep on the rails midfield and have every opportunity to be too strong for his rivals when it matters most.
Overview
Let's start with the favourite, Sacred Elixir absolutely deserves his spot at the top of the market. He's drawn to get the cruisy run midfield with cover and conserve all of his energy. Zac Purton rides which is a positive and he is set to peak fourth-up at a distance range he should have no issues in handling. The win at Moonee Valley last week was good and we get the feeling he will love the wide open spaces of Flemington. So Si Bon ran super in the Caulfield Guineas but his run last start was only fair. He looks a dour Derby type though and should be respected. He maps to get a good run and has an elite jockey in Hugh Bowman on board.
Prized Icon has been a highly-spruiked horse throughout his twelve start career but there's enough negatives against him this Saturday to look elsewhere. Swear is the the interesting runner. Lightly raced and the stable has an enormous opinion of this colt who split Yankee Rose and Prized Icon last start and maps to get a perfect trail with Tommy Berry riding.
Rocketeer rates highly on our figures but from barrier 19 Mick Price has already indicated that Mark Zahra will likely have to take the colt right back in the field and ride for luck. At $17/$4.60 he still has a live each-way chance. Then there is the Murray Baker trained Highlad who if given a positive ride will make his own luck and should be in this race for a long way.
The other horse who's firm in the market is the Cairon Maher trained Beach Life who has drawn ideally and gets in form jockey Nick Hall to tide. He went through the line nicely last start at Caulfield despite doing some work in the run. Maher trains stayers very well and is no stranger to winning the 3YO staying features with Jameka and Set Square winning the Crown Oaks in 2014 and 2015 respectively.
TopBetta Tournament Betting Strategy
Remember, you do not have to bet in each race of the tournament and if you are playing the King Of The Cups you certainly don't need to be too stressed about pushing bettabucks into every race.
However, if you're after some betting advice for this race in particular here is what we've come up with!
HIGHLAD to place @ $5.50
