Sportsbet Blog

Melbourne looks set to rival Sydney on stars this weekend, with many famous names at Caulfield to race. The Group 2 1400m Memsie Stakes has most of these stars, including last year’s Melbourne Cup winner Viewed and Cox Plate winner El Segundo.

The Memsie Stakes is traditionally a warm-up race for horses that are really looking further ahead in the Spring Carnival. Last year’s winner was Weekend Hussler, and other winners include Miss Finland, Sunline and Makybe Diva, who went on to win her third Melbourne Cup later on that year.

Typhoon Tracy is one of the babies of the race. The Coolmore Classic winner, who came third in the J.J Liston Stakes a few weeks ago, is no stranger to challenge. But it will be interesting to see how she copes with this race.

I like experienced racer Orange County. Although he has not won since September last year, he has done well in recent races, including the Group 3 Bletchingly Stakes, he is a tough runner and should be near to his best racing, unlike those coming straight off a spell.

El Segundo is out for revenge. He hopes to beat Mic Mac, the four year old who beat him earlier this month in the Aurie’s Star Handicap. He will prefer the weight-for-age system of the Memsie Stakes, and is a big chance to join Sir Boom and Sunline as the only horses to have won two Memsie Stakes.

Fiumicino looks a good horse, but I think he is better suited to longer distance races. He has raced 1400m five times, and only managed one place. Like so many others, Efficent has not raced well since his last win. He has not even managed a place since the 2007 Melbourne Cup, so hopefully he can get a good result here.

El Segundo and Orange County are my first two picks, because they both run well over this distance and have much-needed experience. I also like Whobegotyou and the old warhorse Valedictum and is worth an each-way bet.

For the latest odds for this great race checkout Sportsbet’s Racing Section, where they give you a $50 free bet just for making an account!

My Tips:

El Segundo
Orange County
Whobegotyou
Valedictum

Caulfield will come to life with the $100,000 Sir John Monash Stakes on Saturday. It should be an exciting race with a handy field of winter sprinters lined up in the race.

IASbet’s bookmaker Mark Read is tipping the favourite, Gran Sasso, to have a win.

“I Am Invincible ($3.70) will set a keen pace up front and, from his gun draw, Gran Sasso ($3.10) will be right on his hammer,” said Read. “Besides the perfect run, his current form and fitness easily sets the benchmark for this race.”

While confident about the chances of the favourite, Read believes that any boil over will be an in house job, giving Orange County a rough chance, “Orange County ($6.00) has a class edge, goes well when fresh and appreciates give in the track, ticking all the boxes as an appealing each way value in this race. Inversely, I’m opposing Damselfly ($5.00) as I regard his current quote as under the odds.”

I agree with Mark Read and think Gran Sasso is the logical choice for the big race. He’s a fit and in form horse and has responded to Chris Symons every move. With the coverted barrier number 1 he has the box seat and expected to do well.

His last run was on a dead track and showed that he is a true sprinter and took the lead from mid pack just before the striaght where he finished to a fairly comfortable win. I think that he will surprise some people come the Spring Carnival.

Mark Read’s IASbet have a huge range of horse racing markets including the Sir John Monash Stakes. They have a great promotion on at the moment, that if you use the promo code BFF100 when joining and make $50 worth of bets you will get $100 worth of free bets. Checkout their site for more info and the latest odds for the race.

Want our racing tips sent directly to you? Then join our free newsletter to get the latest tips and betting news.