Robert Smerdon’s Group 2 winner My Poppette is one of the top-rated mares nominated for Saturday’s How Now Stakes 2016 at Caulfield Racecourse.
Group 2 winner My Poppette leads the 2016 How Now Stakes ballot for Saturday’s mares-only feature at Caulfield Racecourse. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.
The key act on Naturalism Stakes Day, this season’s $150,000 Group 3 How Now Stakes (1200m) sprint has attracted 19 mares at nomination stage.
Sitting top of the How Now Stakes ballot and weights is Smerdon’s Snippetson four-year-old My Poppette chasing her first win since the Group 2 Moonee Valley Fillies Classic (1600m) last Cox Plate Day.
She ran first-up at Sandown-Hillside in a Benchmark 84 crossing fourth and should be improving second-up.
Smerdon has a total of three How Now Stakes nominees with My Poppette ed by stablemates Atmospherical and Every Faith.
Also allocated 58kg along with My Poppette in the set weights plus penalties race is the Phillip Stokes-trained Miss Gunpowder, another runner coming off a first-up fourth.
The Pendragon mare made her four-year-old debut at Morphettville on August 27 running under three lengths off the winner in a Benchmark 90 over 1200m and is after her first win since last September’s Group 2 Thousand Guineas Prelude (1400m) at the Caulfield track.
The highest rated of the nominees are the Lindsay Park-trained duo of Sheidel and Miss Promiscuity.
Holy Roman Emperor five-year-old Sheidel has had just one previous start at Caulfield for an 1100m sprint win in April, which she followed with a devastatingly close second to Precious Gem in Adelaide’s Group 1 Robert Sangster Stakes (1200m).
She comes off a first-up fourth at Moonee Valley a fortnight ago when only two lengths off Wild Rain in the Group 2 McEwen Stakes (1000m), and should improve getting out over her pet distance of 1200m (5-3-1-0).
Stablemate Miss Promiscuity is a six-year-old daughter of Magnus and boasts an outstanding Caulfield track record of four wins, two seconds and a third from nine runs at the course.
She lost her rider in the Robert Sangster bucking Luke Nolen from the saddle, and was last seen running a good fifth to Redzel in Caulfield’s Group 3 The Heath (1100m) in late August.
Michael Kent has nominated for his veteran Written Tycoon eight-year-old Vibrant Rouge who comes off a win over 1400m at the track in easier company on August 27.
The only other last start winner is the Team Hawkes-trained Ameristralia at the very bottom of the How Now Stakes ballot, the Fastnet Rock four-year-old chasing her third win on the trot after back-to-back Bendigo victories over 1100m.
Returning for local Caulfield horseman Mick Price is Secret Agenda, the Not A Single Doubt four-year-old last seen running fourth to Faatinah at Morphettville in the Group 2 Euclase Stakes (1200m) in early May.
Faatinah franked that South Australian form last Saturday winning the Group 2 Bobbie Lewis Quality (1200m) first-yup down the Flemington straight, Secret Agenda also looking to win first-up this weekend.
See below for the official How Now Stakes 2016 nominations, weights and order of entry before the field is released on Wednesday followed by exclusive markets at our No. 1 recommended bookmaker Ladbrokes.com.au.
2016 How Now Stakes Nominations & Ballot
Caulfield Racecourse – 17/09/2016
| # | Form (Last 10) | Horse | Sex | Age | Trainer | Ballot | Wgt. | H. Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7317x340x4 | MY POPPETTE | M | 4 | Robert Smerdon | 1 | 58kg | 84 |
| 2 | 3118x227x4 | MISS GUNPOWDER | M | 4 | Phillip Stokes | 2 | 58kg | 85 |
| 3 | 20x411L0x5 | MISS PROMISCUITY | M | 6 | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | 3 | 57kg | 102 |
| 4 | 0x0x653331 | VIBRANT ROUGE | M | 8 | Michael Kent | 4 | 57kg | 91 |
| 5 | 221x27024x | SECRET AGENDA | M | 4 | Mick Price | 5 | 57kg | 96 |
| 6 | 11x34127x4 | SHEIDEL | M | 5 | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | 6 | 56kg | 103 |
| 7 | 5080x70x36 | ATMOSPHERICAL | M | 6 | Robert Smerdon | 7 | 56kg | 95 |
| 8 | 2114160×86 | SHAKESPEAREAN LASS | M | 5 | Pat Carey | 8 | 56kg | 92 |
| 9 | 016x24088x | EXCLUSIVE LASS | M | 5 | Nigel Blackiston | 9 | 56kg | 85 |
| 10 | 55x581804x | EVERY FAITH | M | 6 | Robert Smerdon | 10 | 55kg | 84 |
| 11 | 1×51832150 | A LOTTA LOVE | M | 5 | Sam Pritchard-Gordon | 11 | 55kg | 87 |
| 12 | 7x1117x577 | MISS SOFTHANDS | M | 7 | Colin Little | 12 | 55kg | 82 |
| 13 | 110×149914 | ANDRASSY | M | 5 | Allison Sheehan | 13 | 55kg | 84 |
| 14 | 1312x3286x | JALAN JALAN | M | 4 | Colin Little | 14 | 55kg | 78 |
| 15 | 122225×60 | MOSSIN’ AROUND | M | 4 | Grahame Begg | 15 | 55kg | 75 |
| 16 | 12112x116x | ESTAMINET | M | 5 | Lee & Anthony Freedman | 16 | 55kg | 83 |
| 17 | 30337×8534 | NOT A HAPPY CAMPER | M | 5 | Mathew Ellerton & Simon Zahra | 17 | 55kg | 73 |
| 18 | 11315×6322 | FOREIGN AFFAIR | M | 5 | Henry Dwyer | 18 | 55kg | 75 |
| 19 | 2x2422x11 | AMERISTRALIA | M | 4 | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | 19 | 55kg | 65 |
