Winx Stand opening delayed

The crowd being capped to 5000 for Everest day because of COVID-19 restrictions might be a good thing for the ATC, with a large part of Randwick still a construction site as the Winx Stand nears completion.

The aim was to have the new stand opened for Saturday but with construction delays because of lockdown, it will not be ready until next month. The construction site means a large area of the lawn area from the 200m mark at Randwick would be unable to be used by the public, which would have significantly reduced the capacity for the big day.

Colts crop the best of this century

The top-end three-year-old colts are shaping as the best crop of the last 20 years as they continue to run records on the clock and clear out from their rivals.

Anamoe has long been seen as the benchmark and confirmed his top ranking by winning the Caulfield Guineas in the fastest time in history from two group 1 winners, after being beaten narrowly in record time by In The Congo in the Golden Rose.

Profondo, after only three starts, has built a profile to match his more experienced classmate and his win in Saturday’s Spring Champion Stakes was a remarkable achievement.

The Deep Impact colt will be spelled, mainly due to the COVID-19 situation, after toying with Flight Stakes winner Never Been Kissed on Saturday. If he had been going to the Cox Plate, there is an argument that he would be favourite after Zaaki’s surprising defeat on the weekend. He could be best of the bunch, but we will not find that out until next year.

Anamoe and Guineas runner-up Captivant are likely to fly the flag for the three-year-olds in the Cox Plate, which is always a great test of a young colt’s ability.

Godolphin has been inundated by offers from lightweight riders for Anamoe in the Cox Plate, while Dean Yendall is booked for Captivant.

It could be the highest-rated Guineas for a long time, with group 1 winners filling the placings as Blue Diamond winner Artorius ran third, and Lightsaber, a group 2 winner, was a distance away in fourth.

“The Cox Plate was always been a great measure of champion colts,” Newgate boss Henry Field said. “If you can win a Cox Plate it usually follows that you will be popular and a success at stud. We feel if Anamoe is going there, we would like another crack at him with Captivant and I think they could be the one to beat.”

Perfect track makes horses the talking point

The talk from Saturday’s racing was Anamoe, Profondo, I’m Thunderstruck and even the defeat of Zaaki, rather than the tracks at Caulfield and Randwick.

Both racing surfaces were turned out in perfect order, firm and fair. It was a credit to Randwick’s Michael Wood and Jason Kerr at Caulfield.

Every horse got their chance and there was no discussion of bias or betting moves late in the day related to how the track was playing, which meant the best horses came out on top.

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Golden Eagle contenders land at Canterbury

Golden Eagle contenders Maximal, Law Of Indicies and Reve De Vol and several impressive credential Europeans arrived at the Canterbury quarantine centre on Saturday night.

The early reports are all horses have travelled well and they were settling into their new surrounding with Maximal and Law Of indices expected to have a worked out later in the week. It adds another layer of interest to the $7.5 million four-year-old contest.