The season’s top two-year-olds face off on a likely wet Rosehill track on Saturday in the 2018 Golden Slipper, tips predicting who the Golden Slipper winner and placegetters will be detailed below.
Written By is the Races.com.au tip to win the 2018 Golden Slipper Stakes this autumn at Rosehill Gardens. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.
The official line-up for the Group 1 $3.5 million Longines Golden Slipper (1200m) now includes the Lindsay Park-trained first emergency Qafila (10) after her stablemate Enbihaar (15) was officially scratched on Friday morning.
A trio of juveniles engaged in the set weights classic are dominating the Golden Slipper odds at Ladbrokes.com.au with the Tony McEvoy-trained filly Sunlight the $4.20 favourite to post her sixth win on the trot.
The Heavy track is McEvoy’s only query when it comes to whether or not his daughter of Zoustar can become the first filly in history to do the Magic Millions Classic – Golden Slipper Stakes double.
Her lead-up has been flawless with successive Rosehill victories to keep the hulking Sunlight in peak form, including her all-the-way win in last Saturday’s Group 3 Magic Night Stakes (1200m) over the Golden Slipper track and distance.
The dangers in Golden Slipper betting also looking to make it nine straight wins for single-figure runners are the Ladbrokes Blue Diamond winning colt Written By ($5) and the Mick Price-trained Seabrook ($9.50).
Both challengers are also last start winners with the Grahame Begg-trained Written By making his Sydney debut saluting in the Group 3 Pago Pago Stakes (1200m) in quicker time than Sunlight won the Magic Night last weekend.
Seabrook meanwhile beat her own kind to break her maiden status at career start number three at Royal Randwick on March 3 in the Group 2 Sweet Embrace Stakes (1200m) and gets the three weeks between runs.
The wet track is an unknown outside of trial form for all but Written By making it a tough one to predict this autumn.
Sunlight is the class in the race, but could there be value further down the markets in something like Santos ($11) for six-time winning trainer Gai Waterhouse or the Chris Waller-trained Performer ($10) out to atone for the Todman Stakes when throwing hoop Hugh Bowman from the saddle?
Earlier in the week we published our comprehensive 2018 Golden Slipper Form Guide & Betting Preview, out below tips based on the race facts and stats uncovered there.
1st
#1 Written By ($5)
Going for the slick Pago Pago Stakes winner to handle the quick back-up and salute doing a double not completed since Stratum (2005). The fillies do have a good recent record in the race, but leaning towards the boys this year and this one is proven in the mud. He’s drawn to get things his way from gate four and chases his fifth win from as many career starts. Looks a bit of value, is fit and was impressive on the pace last week at the track / distance. Can rise again and handle the challengers late.
2nd
#2 Santos ($11)
Waterhouse factor. Sydney’s leading lady of racing has won this race six times and Santos is at good odds to hand her a seventh. Looking to be the first to back-up off the Skyline Stakes and win since the also Waterhouse-trained Dance Hero (2004), but has been kept fit with a subsequent Randwick trial that he won a Heavy (8) track by two lengths. That bodes well with the predicted conditions for Saturday and he just needs to make sure he doesn’t overdo it early with some fast ones on his inside to remain competitive late.
3rd
#10 Sunlight ($4.20)
Deserving favourite having won her last five on the trot including successive Rosehill wins giving her the unbeaten record at the track and also a two-from-two record over 1200m heading into the acid test on the seven day turnaround. She thrives with plenty of racing so the quick back-up is ideal and she’s a trial winner on Heavy going. Not seeing much in the finish and she will be right in it from the barrier (5).
Back our insider Golden Slipper betting tips for 2018 now at the right price through Ladbrokes.com.au.
