Will Capitalist be worth the wait in San Domenico Stakes?
Capitalist has dominated racing headlines in the past week and the Golden Slipper winner is set to make his return to racing in the San Domenico Stakes on Saturday.
Capitalist was included in the 2016 Missile Stakes field last weekend and he was on track to take on the older horses with 51.5 kilograms on his back, but the big wet that hit Sydney forced a change of plan and he was scratched from the race.
The San Domenico Stakes at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday is now the first-up assignment for Capitalist and on paper it looks like a very suitable race for the three-year-old.
Not only will he be taking on horses his own age, but he appears to have a clear edge in quality based on his likely rivals in the San Domenico Stakes – he has 26 points on his closest rival in terms of his handicap rating.
The issue for Capitalist will be the weight that he carries in the San Domenico Stakes and under the set weight plus penalties conditions of the race he will have 60 kilograms on his back.
Weight is not the be all and end all in racing – there are plenty of other more important factors - but 60 kilograms could prove to be a lot of weight for a horse that has just turned three especially as we are still likely to be on a heavy track on Saturday.
Any concern about the big weight and heavy track does not seem to be bothering punters and the classy three-year-old is a favourite in the 2016 San Domenico Stakes betting market.
The other big race taking place this weekend is the P.B. Lawrence Stakes at Caulfield and a very interesting field is set to assemble for the Group 2 event.
Talented mare Suavito started her Melbourne Autumn Racing Carnival campaign with a victory in the Orr Stakes at Caulfield in February and she will meet a weaker field than that in the P.B. Lawrence Stakes.
The daughter of Thorn Park absolutely flies first-up and it is no surprise that the six-year-old looks set to start this race as favourite.
The Cleaner is another very interesting horse in the P.B. Lawrence Stakes field and he will ensure that the race is run at an extremely genuine tempo.
The Group 1 placegetter was very poor in the Conquering at Launceston in December last year, but his new trainer Peter Gelagotis is optimistic about his chances this preparation and he won a barrier trial at Cranbourne by six lengths in July.
Other horses that could go into the P.B. Lawrence Stakes first-up include Australian Cup runner-up Awesome Rock, Robert Smerdon-trained Berisha, the consistent Entirely Platinum, Crown Oaks winner Jameka, talented mare Miss Rose De Lago, Ciaron Maher-trained Set Square and imported stayer Tall Ship.
The presence of so many resuming horses make this a very tough race from a betting perspective and the only real form guide is the Bletchingly Stakes.
Lord Of The Sky won that race and will be in action again in the P.B. Lawrence Stakes, but he received an absolutely dream run in front with Damien Oliver in the saddle and he is not going to get that with The Cleaner in the race.
Mahuta finished third in the same and he is sure to have taken plenty of benefit from the run, while Smokin’ Joey might be better suited out to 1400 metres.