I Wish I Win racing second-up from barrier one is firm favourite in a small nine-horse 2024 Ladbrokes Doomben 10,000 final field to kick off Group 1 racing for the winter in Brisbane this weekend.

The Queensland Winter Racing Carnival hosts its opening elite level race at Doomben on Saturday with the Group 1 $1.5 million Ladbrokes Doomben 10,000 (1200m) hosting a diminutive but class field of sprinters.

Firm favourite in post-acceptances Doomben 10,000 betting markets at race sponsor Ladbrokes.com.au is the Peter Moody & Katherine Coleman-trained 2023 TJ Smith Stakes champ I Wish I Win ($2.20).

The ultra-consistent Savabeel five-year-old is drawn the rails with maestro hoop James McDonald continuing associations.

I Wish I Win is after his first win since Sydney’s TJ Smith Stakes on Heavy going last April, but has had three good runs since.

During the spring last year, he placed in a Memsie (3^rd) and the $20 million The Everest (2^nd) before resuming in Sydney this year on April 6.

When attempting back-to-back TJ Smith Stakes victories, he was far from disgraced crossing under a half length third behind upset winner Chain Of Lightning in his brave title defence.

Fitter second-up now in Brisbane facing a small field of rivals he looks a big chance to return to winning form and kick off his winter raid in style.

The dangers at current Doomben 10,000 odds of $5 and $5.50 respectively are the Joe Pride-trained Private Eye and Chris Waller’s smart mare Espiona.

Blake Shinn partners dual The Everest place-getter Private Eye from gate six on Saturday with the six-year-old son of Al Maher last seen running third on a Heavy (10) Randwick track on April 20 behind Magic Time in the Group 1 All Aged Stakes (1400m).

Private Eye hasn’t won a race since the Group 2 The Shorts last September, but he is a consistent and versatile sprinter not to be forgotten about.

Espiona is out to be the first Doomben 10,000 winning mare since English in 2018 and hand Waller his second win in the event following his success with Boban back in 2015.

She has the outside alley (9) and is also a graduate out of the All Aged Stakes having run a midfield seventh on the bottomless track.

Hopeful for firmer ground this weekend, she brings in strong form lines from the autumn and looks for her first win since the $2 million The Invitation against her own kind last October.

Pride meanwhile also saddles-up the race’s 2022 winner Mazu from gate eight who joins Private Eye in this year’s Doomben 10,000 field for the stable.

After an 11^th in the TJ Smith two back, Mazu was good in easier grade winning the Group 3 Hall Mark Stakes (1200m) on April 20 with 60kg.

He rises in grade again now with the confidence of that success and pays $13 for an upset to add a second Doomben 10,000 trophy to his CV.

In an open market a further two runners are under double-figures at time of publish with class mares Bella Nipotina and Chain Of Lightning both at $9.

The Ciaron Maher-trained Pride Of Dubai mare Bella Nipotina has her 49^th career start this weekend with the $8.9 million earner racing at Doomben for the first time.

She was runner-up to Chain Of Lightning in the TJ Smith before heading west to run 1.4 lengths fourth behind Overpass in Perth’s $5 million The Quokka race last start.

Chain Of Lightning meanwhile is after the TJ Smith Stakes – Doomben 10,000 double with the in-form Jamie Kah to ride the 1200m specialist (9:4-0-1).

A stablemate to favourite I Wish I Win, the fellow Moody & Coleman-trained runner is a striking daughter of Fighting Sun out to atone for her sixth when tested over 1400m in the All Aged.

Three-year-olds have won the past two editions of the Doomben 10,000 with Mazu (2022) and Giga Kick (2023).

This season the sole three-year-old in the mix is the filly Stefi Magnetica with the daughter of All Too Hard prepared by Bjorn Baker.

She was last seen running second in the Group 1 Surround Stakes (1400m) behind Tropical Squall on March 2 and pays $26 to upset her older rivals in the sunshine state on Saturday.

Click here for the latest Doomben 10,000 betting markets courtesy of race sponsor Ladbrokes.com.au.

2024 Ladbrokes Doomben 10,000 Final Field & Barrier Draw

No	Last 10	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Barrier	Weight	Probable Weight	Penalty	Hcp Rating
1	1x231x32x3	I WISH I WIN (NZ)	Peter G Moody & Katherine Coleman	James McDonald	1	58.5kg			118
2	5x132x2603	PRIVATE EYE	Joseph Pride	Blake Shinn	6	58.5kg			114
3	3x9054x501	MAZU	Joseph Pride	Tyler Schiller	8	58.5kg			111
4	x111120x25	BODY BOB	Pat Murphy	Danny Beasley	7	58.5kg			80
5	3315×45424	BELLA NIPOTINA	Ciaron Maher	Craig Williams	3	56.5kg			114
6	4x370x0116	CHAIN OF LIGHTNING	Peter G Moody & Katherine Coleman	Ms Jamie Kah	5	56.5kg			114
7	21714×3367	ESPIONA	Chris Waller	Nash Rawiller	9	56.5kg			113
8	224x0x3312	WEE NESSY	Mick Price & Michael Kent (Jnr)	Adam Hyeronimus	2	56.5kg			103
9	331x12342x	STEFI MAGNETICA	Bjorn Baker	Tim Clark	4	55kg			98

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

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