An elite day of racing at Randwick Racecourse this Saturday is headlined by the running of the next Sydney Spring Racing Carnival’s Group 1 feature, the $350,000 Group 1 George Main Stakes (1600m).
A diminutive but classy field of eight weight-for-age stars will start in the 2010 George Main Stakes with Gai Waterhouse’s More Joyous set to start as the raging favourite.
The form mare of the spring following consecutive wins in the Sheraco Stakes and the Theo Marks Stakes, four-year-old More Joyous is currently paying $1.75 to win on Saturday at Sportsbet.
Drawn in barrier five and due to be ridden by Melbourne Cup winning jockey Corey Brown, More Joyous will be hard to beat.
The second favourite in the George Main Stakes betting is multiple Group 1 winner Theseo at $3.60, another star from the stables of Waterhouse.
Last start victor of the Chelmsford Stakes, seven-year-old warhorse Theseo is set to start on the inside of its stablemate in barrier four with Nash Rawiller aboard.
The other top chance in the George Main Stakes is Chris Waller’s Danleigh (barrier seven) at $5 through Sportsbet, who will start at Randwick instead of defending his Manikato Stakes title at Moonee Valley on Friday night.
Danleigh placed in both the Missile and Warwick stakes this season and is coming off a gallant fourth to last year’s Melbourne Cup winner Shocking in the Makybe Diva Stakes last start on a heavy track.
If the rain holds off and the Randwick track is rated Slow or better on Saturday then Danleigh could cause an upset at good odds.
Last year’s George Main Stakes runner-up Black Piranha is the next shortest priced entry at $12, the dual Stradbroke Handicap winner drawn ideally in barrier one.
Three other Group races highlight the Randwick race card this Saturday with the Group 2 Stan Fox Stakes (1400m) lead by Masquerader, the Group 3 Colin Stephen Quality (2400m) where just five horses will face off and the Group 3 Bill Ritchie Handicap (1400m).
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2010 George Main Stakes Field, Barrier Draw & Odds
| # | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Br. | Weight (kg) | Odds* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | THESEO | Gai Waterhouse | Nash Rawiller | 4 | 59 | 3.60 |
| 2 | DANLEIGH | Chris Waller | Hugh Bowman | 7 | 59 | 5.00 |
| 3 | BLACK PIRANHA | Con Karakatsanis | Brad Rawiller | 1 | 59 | 12.00 |
| 4 | EMPIRES CHOICE (NZ) | Bart Cummings | Tim Clark | 6 | 59 | 67.00 |
| 5 | CONISTON BLUEBIRD | Bede Murray | Glyn Schofield | 8 | 59 | 201.00 |
| 6 | SNAPY HALO (ARG) | John O’Shea | Michael Rodd | 3 | 59 | 101.00 |
| 7 | TRUSTING | John P Thompson | Jim Cassidy | 2 | 58.5 | 21.00 |
| 8 | MORE JOYOUS (NZ) | Gai Waterhouse | Corey Brown | 5 | 56.5 | 1.75 |
*Odds correct at time of publication – check [sportsbet] for updates
