One of the most anticipated races on Caulfield Cup Day this Saturday is the $125,000 Group 3 David Jones Cup (2000m), which has attracted a capacity field of top stayers.
The 2010 David Jones Cup final field features 16 gallopers plus three emergencies, making this one of the best betting opportunities for punters at the Caulfield meeting.
Leading the entries is the Lloyd Williams-owned C’est La Guerre, the 2008 Melbourne Cup third placegetter coming off his first win in over two years after taking out the Craven Plate (2000m) at Randwick a fortnight ago.
The top-weighted David Jones Cup runner, C’est La Guerre will carry 57 kilos on Saturday when ridden by Nicholas Hall, two kilos less than the six-year-old carried to victory in the Craven.
Craven Plate runner-up Purple is also back to face off against C’est La Guerre again on Saturday, the Peter Snowden-trained mare coming off some impressive recent form that also included a third to Theseo in the Chelmsford Stakes and a third to Descarado in the Hill Stakes.
One horse likely to get plenty of love from the punters when betting markets on the race open at [sportsbet] is the Hawkes-trained Zabeel gelding Rainbow Styling.
Six-year-old Rainbow Styling claimed an upset win in the Naturalism Stakes at this track and distance two starts back and is backing up from an eye-catching second to Precedence in the JRA Cup at Moonee Valley.
International runners set to contest the David Jones Cup this year include Kiwi gelding Red Ruler * and the Luca Cumani-trained European mare Becqu Adoree making her Australian race debut heading towards the 2010 Melbourne Cup.
The feature race on the card at Caulfield this Saturday is the $2.5 million Group 1 Caulfield Cup (2400m) scheduled as Race 8 at 4:05pm (AEDST), while the 2010 David Jones Cup will run earlier as Race 7 at 3:20 (AEDST).
Make sure you lock in the best odds on all your selections this weekend by signing up with [sportsbet] today!
*Note: Red Ruler has been scratched from the 2010 David Jones Cup as the scratching of Zabrasive and Master O’Reilly from the Caulfield Cup pushes Red Ruler into the field as the second emergency. The Chris Waller-trained Token Of Honour now gains a start in the David Jones Cup.
*Update: Pacino is the second horse to be scratched from Saturday’s David Jones Cup. Pacino was a $61 outsider to win and their withdrawal paves the way for second emergency Crocodile Canyon to start from barrier five.
*Update: Four more runners have been scratched from today’s Daivd Jones Cup with #3 Dealer Principal, #14 Laristan, #16 Gotta Keep Cool and #19 Zantelagh all ruled out
2010 David Jones Cup Final Field, Barrier Draw & Weights
| # | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight (kg) | Hcp. Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | C’EST LA GUERRE (NZ) | Robert Hickmott | Nicholas Hall | 7 | 57 | 108 |
| 2 SCRATCHED | RED RULER (NZ) | John Sargent | Mark Du Plessis | 6 | 56.5 | 107 |
| 3 | DEALER PRINCIPAL | Anthony Cummings | Nash Rawiller | 17 | 55.5 | 103 |
| 4 | EMPIRES CHOICE (NZ) | Bart Cummings | Luke Nolen | 19 | 55.5 | 104 |
| 5 | RAINBOW STYLING (NZ) | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | Chris Munce | 9 | 55.5 | 103 |
| 6 | THE FUZZ (NZ) | David Hayes | Brad Rawiller | 4 | 55 | 102 |
| 7 | GINGA DUDE (NZ) | Graeme Boyd | Michael Walker | 13 | 54.5 | 101 |
| 8 | PURPLE | Peter Snowden | Mark Zahra | 11 | 54.5 | 107 |
| 9 | PLAYWRIGHT (NZ) | Steve Richards | Steven King | 8 | 54 | 100 |
| 10 | ZOOMIN (NZ) | Michael Kent | Glen Boss | 2 | 53 | 97 |
| 11 | PACINO | Clinton McDonald | Glyn Schofield | 15 | 53 | 95 |
| 12 | DREAM PEDLAR | Troy Blacker | Danny Nikolic | 12 | 53 | 93 |
| 13 | BECQU ADOREE (FR) | Luca Cumani | Gerald Mosse | 16 | 53 | 89 |
| 14 | LARISTAN (FR) | David Hayes | Dwayne Dunn | 10 | 53 | 89 |
| 15 | STANSTILL (IRE) | Michael Kent | Craig Williams | 3 | 53 | 89 |
| 16 | GOTTA KEEP COOL | Darren Weir | Ben Melham | 14 | 53 | 86 |
| 17e | TOKEN OF HONOUR | David Hayes | – | 18 | 53 | 82 |
| 18e | CROCODILE CANYON (NZ) | Howard Mathews | – | 5 | 53 | 82 |
| 19e | ZANTELAGH | Mark Kavanagh | Michael Rodd | 1 | 53 | 78 |
