TONIGHT’S thoroughbred meeting in Launceston boasts what promises to be two of the best races held on the StrathAyr surface.
The Jackson Motor Company 3YO Cup has brought together some of the state’s best three-year-olds while the inaugural Conquering Weight-for-age classic over 1400 metres also boasts many of Tasmania’s elite middle distance performers.
The 3YO Cup has been made more interesting by the barrier draw with the early favourite Arenzano that is unbeaten from three starts this season, drawing the outside gate (12) with another well-fancied runner Bundaleeda drawing gate 10.
Bundaleeda showed brilliant early speed to score a convincing win in Launceston at his first start for almost six months. He followed up with a game second to Arenzano in the 3YO Vase over 1100 metres two weeks ago.
Last start winner What Life Brings has struck gold by drawing gate one and now looms as the likely favourite based on his awesome first-up effort to lead all the way in a maiden over 1100 metres four weeks ago and he has since won a 900-metre trial in Hobart last Monday week.
The gelded son of Savoire Vivre is a full brother to former star sprinter-miler Life To The Full and will be ridden by Brendon McCoull.
Mister John is unbeaten fro three career starts with two of those coming last season.
He resumed in a class two handicap on the Synthetic surface at Devonport where he scored a game win on October 14 against the older horses and he has been freshened up for this race.
The Darren Kenny-trained Kenjorwood won on debut in a 2YO Maiden and then was competitive in a number of juvenile features before being sent to Melbourne to contest the VRC Sires produce in March in which he finished eighth of 14.
He was spelled after the Sires Produce and resumed racing with an eye-catching fourth in a class one handicap in Launceston over 1200m on November 7.
Smart Catch, Snippetee Bee and Light The Candles all have credentials to suggest they could win and even the only maiden performer in the race Settler’s Joy is not without a chance of finishing in the top five if she has any luck from a wide barrier (11).
The Conquering is named in honor of one of the best sprinter-milers to ever race in Tasmania.
Conquering was owned and bred by the Runnymede Stud Syndicate and trained throughout his career by Charlie Goggin.
The gelding by Dangerous from former star race mare Currently had 80 starts for 23 wins and 22 minor placings for just under $900,000 in stakes.
The race looms as another classic battle between the horses that finished in a tight group in the Newmarket handicap two weeks ago.
Dream Flyer was beaten by the sole interstate invader It’s Crunch Time in the Newmarket with only the narrowest of margins separating the pair.
Geegees Blackflash, last season’s outstanding Tasmanian galloper, resumed in the Newmarket and finished well back but he only knocked up the last 150 metres and will strip a lot fitter for this assignment.
He won this raced, or its equivalent, last year.
Rebel Bride still finished close-up despite enduring a torrid run in the race three-wide without cover for the duration and Catwen Boy rattled home from well back and had he obtained a clear passage over the final 100 metres the Mark Ganderton-trained gelding probably would have won.
Zellarcy loves this track and distance and while he has yet to prevail at weight-for-age he is the likely leader and the one to run down.
Sorell Miss is a class act and cannot be left out of the chances along with Rave Night that should be ready to show up.