| Race 7 – 2:10PM Schweppes Rubiton Stakes (1100 METRES) |
|---|
| Of $175,000.1st $105,000, 2nd $31,500, 3rd $15,750, 4th $7,875, 5th $4,375, 6th $3,500, 7th $3,500, 8th $3,500 GROUP 2 Set Weights plus Penalties, Maidens at time of entry are ineligible, Apprentices cannot claim.Field Limit: 16 + 4 EM |
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| No | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BETTER THAN READY | Kelly Schweida | Ric McMahon | 2 | 57kg | |||
| 2 | EXCELORADA | Neville Parnham | Steven Parnham | 7 | 57kg | |||
| 3 | LANKAN RUPEE | Mick Price | Craig Newitt | 4 | 57kg | |||
| 4 | FIRST COMMAND | Anthony Freedman | Stephen Baster | 8 | 56kg | |||
| 5 | POCKET ROCKETS | Tony McEvoy | Damien Oliver | 5 | 56kg | |||
| 6 | LION OF BELFORT | Mick Price | Glen Boss | 6 | 53kg | |||
| 7 | ICONIC | Tony McEvoy | Brenton Avdulla | 1 | 53kg | |||
| 8 | DIAMOND OASIS | John O’Shea | Craig Williams | 3 | 53kg |
In the news:
Experienced jockey Josh Parr will handle tough Brisbane galloper River Lad when he makes his Sydney debut in the Expressway Stakes.
The winner of 11 of his 33 starts, River Lad has been rewarded for his consistency with a trip to Sydney to tackle the Group Two race over 1200m at Randwick on Saturday.
Trainer Natalie McCall is confident River Lad will not be out of place in an outstanding field of horses which includes superstar Boban and the Queen’s horse Carlton House.
“We will get Josh Parr to ride him and he has a lot of big-race experience, McCall said.
“River Lad deserves his chance against the rest. River Lad has won us more than $622,000 but the thing about him is he always gives his best.”
She said River Lad showed his big heart when he overcame problems to break a Doomben drought last start carrying 60.5kg.
“I’m just thrilled to have Sydney runner. It is my first time there. If he gets in the place money I will be stoked,” McCall said.
At this stage River Lad will have just one Sydney start and then head back to Brisbane to get ready for the winter carnival.
“But if he races well on Saturday we might be tempted to stay on during the Sydney autumn,” McCall said.
The Expressway Stakes is a traditional curtain-raiser to the Sydney autumn carnival and there are no shortage of stars expected to start their carnival campaigns in the weight-for-age sprint.
Premier trainer Chris Waller has four entries who are all resuming.
The quartet are horse-of-the-year contender Boban, former Queenslander Sizzling, top mare Arinosa and the well-performed stayer Moriarty.
Group One winners among the 14 nominations are Boban, Sizzling and the Guy Walter-trained Appearance.
