Flying three-year-old Star Turn has opened favourite in 2017 William Reid Stakes betting to post his first win of the season at Moonee Valley Racecourse on Friday night.
Star Turn is early favourite in William Reid Stakes 2017 betting for the Group 1 sprint at Moonee Valley on Friday night. Photo: Steve Hart.
The field for this year’s $500,000 Group 1 Keogh Homes William Reid Stakes (1200m) is down to a dozen starters after the early scratching of the widely-drawn Kuro (13).
Updated William Reid Stakes odds at Ladbrokes.com.au on Moonee Valley Race 7 at 9:30pm (AEDT) has the Team Hawkes-trained Star Witness colt Star Turn installed as the $4.40 favourite.
Foxwedge (2012) was the last three-year-old William Reid Stakes winner, while the last favourite to salute for the punters in the autumn sprint was Spirit Of Boom (2014).
Friday night marks the first Moonee Valley run for Star Turn who comes off back-to-back Group 1 thirds down the famous Flemington straight.
The latest saw him beaten two lengths by Redkirk Warrior in the Group 1 Newmarket Handicap (1200m), which last produced a William Reid Stakes winner in 2014 with the aforementioned Spirit Of Boom (2nd).
Star Turn is drawn a treat in barrier three for the William Reid and has Dwayne Dunn, who rode him for the first-up Black Caviar Lightning third, back aboard.
Following closely in William Reid Stakes betting 2017 at $4.80 is the always-honest Lindsay Park-trained mare Sheidel.
She jumps from gate nine with Blake Shinn in the saddle of the Holy Roman Emperor five-year-old.
Two back Sheidel won Caulfield’s Group 1 Oakleigh Plate (1100m) before her close fourth in the Newmarket Handicap.
The 1200m is her go and from nine runs over the distance she boasts a smart record of four wins and two seconds.
She is a Moonee Valley placegetter who can handle the tight turns and could prove hard to run down if she gets into the right spot on Friday night.
Occupying the third line of betting at $7.50 is the Darren Weir-trained Hellbent, a four-year-old I Am Invincible stallion out to improve on his Oakleigh Plate fourth.
He is yet to run at Moonee Valley, but did it tough from a wide draw last time out and will get a better run from barrier five in the William Reid out to hand Weir his second win in the race in three years after the success of Lucky Hussler (2015).
Rounding out the single figure fancies are Rock Magic ($8.50) and Rebel Dane ($9.50).
Perth raider Rock Magic is first-up on the weekend running for the first time since his brave third when under a length off the winner Takedown at home in November’s Group 1 Winterbottom Stakes (1200m).
The genuine sprinter is a gun back in WA and out to bring that form to Melbourne on the back of a winning Belmont trial in early March.
Rebel Dane is also kicking off his autumn in the William Reid Stakes field, back down under after his failed eleventh as an $81 roughie behind Aerovelocity in the Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint (1200m) at Sha Tin in December.
See below for the latest William Reid Stakes 2017 betting markets available now at Ladbrokes.com.au who are offering Enhanced Odds on the race (excluding NSW / T&Cs apply / Max Bet $100).
