Wednesday Winners

Best Each Way Ascot r5 Ganaji Wangkathe ; Only brings country (Geraldton) maiden form to the city , however has at least hit the line into the placings over 1400m in two starts. Of the two favourites , Miss Santa Cors has only placed 1 in 10 starts and Free To Fly has raced exclusively between 1000m to 1200m . $9.50 each way seems good value .

SRM N0’s 1 & 3 top 4. Rocking In Broome Ran 2nd on Debut over 1685m behind Invincible Thief , not bad form for a $26 pop . Likely to get buried on the rail from barrier 1 but if there’s room he might run into the money and add value to the exotics.

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Sunday Prayers

Best Quinella Albany r3 No’s 2 & 3 ; Eternally Yours looks awfully hard to beat dropping from a narrow 2nd in a c2 this track & distance to a moderate maiden. Gilded Reign has finished close enough in metro / provincial maidens to be some sort of threat from the good draw for CJP. The fixed odds SRM is north of $3 .

Best Bet Albany r5 Wiluna Lass ; Very speedy 3yo filly who is dropping a long way in grade and should lead this comfortably for Lucy Fiore who has won on her before.

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Weekend Winners

Best Bet Ascot r7 Bonjoy ; Little separated Bonjoy , Fast Flicker and London’s Image in the Bunbury Stakes and the other two have a significant weight swing against our tip. Flicker is 5 weeks between runs with bar plates . London’s Image likely gets a head start but not as big as the one she got at Bunbury with Bonjoy putting in a remarkable finishing burst. That’s the way to ride her and she looks far better suited to the walk and sprint over 1600m last start where she gave them all weight .

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Sunday Prayers

Geraldton r4 The Horseman ; Beaten a head in a 3 way photo first up after bombing the start , being hard ridden to catch the field and exploding late in a remarkable effort over 1100m. With a cleaner getaway and an extra 100m , it’s hard to see him not turning the tables on the other too. That leaves Playing Games and Scurgeofthewest who are dropping in distance deep into campaigns.

Best Bet Geraldton r6 Magnifeera; Is 2/2 at 1400m and is drawn to get every possible for Lucy Fiore who has been unstoppable in feature races lately , hopefully we don’t jinx the run.

Geraldton r7 True Player ; Looked a moral in the Albany Cup and although it was a narrow margin , it got the job done with another Lucy 10/10 peach. Rocking Society gets 1.5kg swing but still has to carry 60kg from an awkward gate , therefore I think the fav will get a softer run and still out sprint him at the finish. Invincible Thief is in career best form and can pose a threat. Rock In Wonder should lead and take running down .

SRM No 3 Top 2 , No 9 Top 3 , No 13 Top 4 ;

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Weekend Winners

Best Bet Ascot r7 Maria Lucia ; Seven weeks between runs , drawn wide , thought she went enormous sitting outside Aurum Belle last start and chasing her all the way to the line. Drawn inside her this time , it’s hard to see them letting the fav cross , especially with the stablemate and undefeated colt Beatty drawn 1 with Pike booked .

SRM 1 & 8 Top 3. With blinkers going on both first time , I think Maria Lucia leads and Beatty sits on her back. If Beatty leads then Aurum Belle most likely breezes and Maria finds her back. In either situation or even if a roughie upsets the apple cart , both should get ideal runs and finish top 3.

Ascot r8 (Quokka) Novelties ; Box 1 2 3 5 6 : I’m a proud West Australian in all things sport but the Eastern State raiders bring far superior form to this years slot race. In racebook order ;

Jigsaw ; 7yo on pace warrior who is remarkably going for his 7th straight win , 2 /6 of which were at group 1 level over 1200m . Wide barrier wont stop him landing somewhere close to the top.

Caballus ; Last start Newmarket winner no less ! before that ran 2nd to Joliestar . Wont get it on his own terms this time but still outstanding form.

Rey Magnerio ; His two runs at Ascot were a fantastic 3rd in the Winterbottom over 1200m where the race wasn’t run to suit and a win over 1400 in the Goldrush. Only beaten 1.27 lengths behind Jigsaw first up . Expect Pike to settle him behind the expected hot tempo and give him his chance.

Jedibeel ; 4th in the Oakleigh Plate and 2nd in the Galaxy where although it was a bunched finish , he was very unlucky and should of won. Not as suited at WFA as the others but adds value at $15 , should be flashing home late.

Spywire ; His recent wins were against slightly easier opposition but he has drawn 1 and can sit leaders back / 3 back and follow the rail into the placings , adding value to the exotics.

Happy to be proven wrong but I just can’t fit any of the locals into the first 4 in a betting perspective.

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Sunday Prayers

Best Bet Kalgoorlie r4 Nistirith ; She generally flies the gates and lands on speed and that is the place to be at Kal. 1200m is a genuine query based on her metro 1000m runs however she copped pressure over 1100m last week and held maiden grade opposition off comfortably. If she finds the front and controls she will be awfully hard to run down , if she has to work out wide then she will be very vulnerable to the stablemate Stylin.

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Weekend Winners

Best Bet Ascot r3 Kay Tee Why ; 1000m specialist who is at his explosive best fresh and he will have to be to run Tycoon Harry down .He’s the other 1000m speedster and will settle on pace. Looks an Obvious quinella , I’m backing Pike to time it to perfection.

Best SRM Searchin Times (9) & Rally The Troops (5) Top 3.; Very confident Searchin Times is the best horse in this race however her last win was her least impressive and 5 in a row for a 3yo filly against the older horses is an ask. Also not convinced she is a barrier 1 horse. Rally The Troops was so impressive at the midweeks for the Unstoppable Holly Nottle . Going to take the SRM , back RT Troops at the better odds and save on Searchin . Basically if 1 wins and they both finish top 3 we get a result , big result if RT Troops wins.

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Gero Gambles

Best Bet r4 Gold Keeper ; Has finished in front of Prince Ragnar last two times they met and is drawn to stalk him in the run. Thehorsemans first 3 runs in the region were elite , form tapered off at end of campaign . If he’s ready he can charge over the top late.

SRM No’s 1 2 4 all to run top 4.

Wednesday Winners

Best Bet Pinjarra r4 Quokka Rocka ; 2 starts for 2 3rds so far and drawn barrier 2. 2nd fav has 1 2nd from 4 starts and is drawn 12. 3rd fav has no form to recommend and the others in the market are from big stables , most likely being kept safe due to the unknown.

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Sunday Prayers

Best Bet Albany r7 True Player ; Horse is flying , jockey is flying , drawn and weighted to dominate this race. He comes from much lower rating races than 2nd fav Rocking Society who is the logical danger however I think True Player has the better turn of foot and will mow them all down with arrogance.

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Weekend Winners

Best Value Ascot r6 Snipetty Legend : Geraldton horse who has won 5/9 over the 1400m. Only beaten 2.2 lengths only start at Ascot and the form out of that race is strong enough for him to run a race at $14 each way. Important you can make ground as he will give the favourites a decent head start from the bad draw.

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Friday Fill Up

Best Quinella Ascot r4 No’s 1 & 3. : Feature race of the day is a field of 5 and they all come out of the same race last start. Bonjoy is classes above them and in scintillating form. This is a handicap however so I’m just a little concerned about the 5kgs she gives Elite Missile who also has been smashing the line from way back.

Ascot r6 Boxed Novielties ; 4 5 8 9 10 .

Best Roughie Ascot r8 Traded My Shoes ; Did absolutely nothing at her first 6 starts. Won a 4yo maiden trial by 6 lengths and then won an Albany maiden first up. She led in the trial and then bombed the start in the maiden so despite it being a moderate race , the win had merit. Harder race yes but still only a c1 where most have moderate records so $34 is enticing enough to see if she can continue to improve,

Best Bet Ascot r10 Pony Up ; The stable is going really well and the horse was 60 days between runs when winning well last start so should be improved and stays in the same grade.

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Wednesday Winners

MEGABET Ascot r6 Masmello ; Has clashed with Wonderfully Made in all the traditional Oaks lead up races , and turned the tables over 2200m. She has looked the genuine stayer of the two all the way through and I’m surprised she has got out to $3 with the fav rock solid at $2.05 . Set weights might suit the fav but the map favors Masmello , stalking Admire Astra and hopefully outstaying all of them to the line.

Best Value Ascot r7 The Jester’s Son ; Found the front this track & trip last start in Grad company.and was never going to lose from there . Start prior went within a nose of winning the Esperance Cup. Double figures in an even race will do me nicely.

Best Roughy Ascot r10 Sky Duke ; Last start ran 2nd to Almighty Class at Listed Level. That was on the 7th of Feb and has been scratched from races since then . He has a great first up record so the gap between runs should be ok. If Neville is happy to start him tomorrow , I’m happy to have a nibble at the big odds on offer , dropping back to 72+ company.

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Sunday Prayers

Best Value Pinjarra r5 Universal Talk ; Debuted in a 1300m maiden at 50/1 , racing behind the leader and running 2nd to that runner who went on to win a Saturday race next start. Straight to the paddock and resumes over 1300m , draws to get a very similar run from barrier 2 and led all the way in a recent barrier trial. $12 / $3.60 looks value.

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Weekend Winners

Best Bet Ascot r7 Searchin Times ; Has won a maiden c1 and f&m c3 , raising the bar with aplomb on each occasion. Now steps up to a 1mw 60+ against the older horses as a popular $2.20 favourite. Think she has the upside to handle this field and progress to listed level in time. Will not be betting at the current odds until I see how the track is playing . A leader / rail bias would make her task very difficult , a fair track and I’ll have a decent crack.

Ascot r9 Bonjoy ; Thought she was the best horse in the Bunbury Stakes but would the barrier defeat her ? On the home turn yes , on the finish line no! This is a rinse and repeat job. If the track is playing fair to swoopers then she has the class and will to win to back confidently. If the track is favoring on pace runners her task again looks that much harder .

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Wednesday Winners

Best Bet Ascot r1 Hoya The Destroyer ; Heavily supported first up and ran 2nd without any luck in running. If he shows the same turn of foot here in a field of 6 , over his pet distance of 1400m , then he really should be destroying them. 59.5 2nd up as a c1 in a c3 is some sort of leveler but also an indication of the strength of the field.

Ascot r6 New Target ; Has started the prep with two dominant 1000m victories. Although this is against harder opposition , it’s a similar set up ( field of 5 /1000m ) . Niccimmota might cross and take running down but not sure she’s at the top of her game and even from last the fav will be close enough to to have a target on the leaders back and zap her.

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Weekend Winners

Best Bet Pingrup r2 Schubeck ; Yep you read it right , I’m going to a field of 4 at Pingrup for the best bet of the weekend! His first up run behind now Saturday winner Pingers in a Bunbury c3 is so many lengths superior to these it’s not funny and his next three runs were ok considering the class difference. Four Sees has been ok but in Albany & Esperance c2s so fav? The other two got beat at Kojonup recently.Nothing would surprise in a race like this but Schubeck should be fav in my opinion and I’m pretty confident.

Ascot r3 Lucky I Am : Not sure I’ve seen him not race in the lead until last start when he uncharacteristically bombed the start. Funnily enough he attacked the line from last to 2nd and they just might of learnt something. Providing he jumps they can either lead or take a sit and box seat . He looks hard to beat in either scenario . I found this Ascot meeting impossible to label anything a “Best Bet “ . A 40/60% split covers your stake should it place.

Best Value Ascot r8 Sky Duke ; 3 starts ago he won the Boxing Day Dash at Pinjarra . I then tipped him as a value bet and he ran 9th / 10 however i missed the dreaded bar plates going on. He then went to the Cyril Flower and ran 2nd to Almighty Class at $31. He opened at $12 and currently sits at $26 which is odd considering his form. The drift is concerning and it seems I struggle to catch him on the right day but I’m having something on each way in case.

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Gero Gambles

Best Bet r4 Snippety Legend ; Has had 5 starts at this track & distance and won 4 of them. Only beaten just over two lengths in a Ascot Grad 60+ last start and looks the one to beat with Tash Faithfull booked. The market flucs on this race so far have been fascinating . Manhattan Strip ( 2.80 right out to 6) was luckless last start and Austin Galati is Snippety’s regular jockey. Truly Gallant ( 2.80 - 1.90 - 2.05) has Nottle booked and is coming from an encouraging run in lesser grade , dropping 6.5 kgs to compensate. Snippety ( 4 - 2.35 -2.5) was backed into favouritism early and remained rock solid .

SRM r7 N1 Top 2 , N10 Top 3 ; Scurgeofthewest is going for 5 in a row and this is no harder than the previous 4. The last and only time he raced over 1600 however he ran 3rd with 60kgs in a c1 . That was May last year and clearly he has come on since then , I just want to include the stablemate Let’s Sea as insurance , he was a big winner this track and trip last start and is in career best form. The SRM is north of $3 opposed to the fav winning at odds on.

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Pinny Punts

Best Bet R2 Oscars No Grouch ; 3yo with a record of 3 starts for 2 placings. The first two starts were over 1000m and his best run was the latest , finishing well into 3rd from back in the field over 1300m. This indicates that the 1400m should suit and the other horses in the betting have had more starts for very limited success. Likely to settle midfield at best from the draw so a fair or swoopers track is required.

Best Value r6 Blue Can Talk ; 3 starts ago ran a pimple 2nd to Avoidance in a grad 60+ at 100/1 , that galloper then won again last Saturday . From barrier 1 she needs to jump and lead or box seat to cause the upset but she’s not hopeless. Only 7 runners so a small win spec only .

Novelties 5 6 7 , 5 6 7 , 1 3 5 6 7 , 1 3 5 6 7 .

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Wednesday Winners

Best Bet Ascot r5 Streak of God , Playing God 3yo trained by Williams , Pike in the saddle and last start maiden winner sees it a $3.10 fav in an all aged 1800m C3. The maiden was over 1695m and the best part of his run was late where he ran through the line. It’s Derby time and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s heading there if he measures up. Plenty to like in this moderate line up however there are negatives. There is a strong Easterly blowing today , that favours on pace at Ascot and he is drawn wide. The 2nd fav Mistress of War is a natural front runner. This makes the price questionable but I’m going to back The Wizard to overcome any map problems. Black for Cash is dropping right back in grade , a difficult type of horse for an apprentice but he’s good enough.

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