Gun three-year-old Star Turn is the top fancy in a 12-starter Schillaci Stakes 2016 field and betting market for Caulfield Guineas Day on Saturday.
Star Turn is early favourite in the 2016 Schillaci Stakes field and odds for this Saturday at Caulfield Racecourse. Photo: Steve Hart.
Closing the bumper card as Caulfield Race 10 at 5:45pm (AEDT), this year’s $400,000 Group 2 Mitsubishi Electric Schillaci Stakes (1100m) has attracted a dozen final acceptors.
The sole three-year-old taking on the older gallopers at weight-for-age is the Team Hawkes-trained Star Witness colt Star Turn who sits top of the current Schillaci Stakes odds at Ladbrokes.com.au.
Winner of the Group 3 San Domenico Stakes (1100m) first-up in a race the Golden Slipper winner Capitalist crossed fourth in at Rosehill in mid-August, Star Turn was last seen crossing second to Astern in the Group 2 The Run To The Rose (1200m) a fortnight later.
He has been freshened-up since and is at a quote of $3 to salute from gate eight with Craig Williams booked for the ride, the horse’s first in Melbourne since his fifth to Extreme Choice in the Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) back in February.
Three other Schillaci Stakes final acceptors are also under $10 for the win including Fell Swoop ($6) running first-up from gate seven with Hugh Bowman aboard.
Matthew Dale’s Not A Single Doubt five-year-old has a solid first-up record (4-1-2-0) and races for the first time since his sixth in the Group 1 Doomben 10,000 (1350m) from late May.
He chases his first win since the Group 2 Victory Stakes (1200m) also run in Brisbane during the winter and before that matched it with the world’s best sprinter Chautauqua crossing second in the Group 1 TJ Smith Stakes (1200m) in Sydney.
Fell Swoop also has winning form at Caulfield, where his last run produced a Group 1 Oakleigh Plate (1100m) second to Flamberge at the same track / distance as the Schillaci Stakes.
Darren Weir’s Oakleigh Plate winner Flamberge is also accepted for Saturday’s short-distance feature, the Exceed And Excel seven-year-old drawn gate four with Damian Lane continuing his association.
Flamberge is at $10 to return to winning form first-up, the veteran a first-up flyer (7-4-2-1), but needing to atone for his dead last in the TJ Smith Stakes and disappointing 14th last time out to Black Heart Bart in Adelaide’s Group 1 The Goodwood (1200m) on May 21.
The other single-figure hopes meanwhile are Malaguerra ($7.50) and early market mover Ocean Embers ($9.50) who has won three from four this campaign.
Peter Gelagotis saddles-up Magnus five-year-old Malaguerra, the Group 1 BTC Cup (1200m) winner racing for the first time since a ninth to Under The Louvre in the Group 1 Stadbroke Handicap (1400m).
Malaguerra is undefeated fresh with four wins from as many resuming runs to date and is also two-from-three over the 1100m distance.
Ocean Embers has Dwayne Dunn in the saddle on Saturday, the Shea Eden-trained Beneteau mare last seen winning the Group 3 Cockram Stakes (1200m) in late August to take her Caulfield track record up to three wins from three starts.
See below for the full Schillaci Stakes 2016 field, barriers, jockeys and latest Fixed Win odds provided by Ladbrokes.com.au.
