The James Cummings-trained Cylinder is firm favourite to keep the wins coming this spring in the Group 1 $1 million Golden Rose Stakes (1400m) at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday.

Cylinder is favourite to win Saturday’s 2023 Golden Rose in Sydney for Godolphin. Photo: Steve Hart.

One of the key three-year-old features of the Sydney Spring Racing Carnival, the Golden Rose Stakes field features 13 young hopefuls this season.

Current post-acceptance Golden Rose Stakes betting markets at Ladbrokes have the autumn’s Golden Slipper runner-up Cylinder as the $3.50 top elect off back-to-back winning lead-up runs this time in.

The progressive Exceed And Excel colt was good fresh in Melbourne’s Group 3 Vain Stakes (1100m) before another narrow but convincing win in the Group 2 Run To The Rose (1200m) last Start.

The fellow Godolphin-raced Bivouac (2019) was the last horse to complete the Run To The Rose – Golden Rose double, and the price on Cylinder to be the next jumping from an  ideal gate six draw this weekend are being kept short.

Cylinder has the talented Nash Rawiller retaining the ride with the hoop on a high after taking out the $1 million 7 Stakes on Think It Over and $1 million The Shorts on The Everest-bound Private Eye in Sydney last Saturday.

The danger occupying the second line of markets at current Golden Rose Stakes odds of $5 is the Chris Waller-trained Shinzo racing first-up as a three-year-old this weekend.

Winner of the autumn’s Group 1 Golden Slipper Stakes, the Snitzel colt is looking to pick up where he left off in Group 1 winning fashion.

He looked to have come on nicely with an August barrier trail win over the marvel Zaaki.

Shinzo has a lovely Rosehill track record and jumps from wider out in gate 10 with Ryan Moore aboard.

Waller has prepared two previous Golden Rose winners with Zoustar (2013) and The Autumn Sun (2018).

Along with Shinzo the star Sydney-based horseman also saddles-up his fellow Group 1 champ Militarize in this year’s field.

Militarize completed the Inglis Sires’ – Champagne Stakes double as a two-year-old before a solid return when the Dundeel colt ran a fast-finishing fifth under a length beaten fresh in the Run To The Rose.

He gets the run of the race from barrier two on the weekend and has Brazilian hoop Joao Moreira in the saddle.

Currently occupying the third line of Golden Rose markets at $6 is the Ciaron Maher & David Eustace-trained King Colorado who comes off a solid run when ninth behind Fangirl in the Group 1 Winx Stakes (1400m) last month.

He will be better second-up with natural improvement with the winter’s Group 1 J.J. Atkins (1600m) winner sure to appreciate the step-up in distance and being back against his own age.

Forensics (2008) was the last Golden Rose winning filly and this year the only girl up against the colts and geldings is Charm Stone prepared by Mick Price & Michael Kent Jnr.

The daughter of I Am Invincible is being kept safe in the markets at $8 as she chases her third win on the trot this time in.

Fresh she won the Group 3 Quezette Stakes (1100m) at Caulfield before heading to The Valley on September nine for a stylish win in the Listed Atlantic Jewel Stakes (1200m).

Just shorter than her in the markets at $7 meanwhile is another last-start winner, Gary Portelli‘s Capitalist gelding Encap who was last seen putting 1.67 lengths on his closest rival in the Group 3 Ming Dynasty Quality at this course and distance on September 9.

Check out the full Golden Rose Stakes odds online now through Ladbrokes.

2023 Golden Rose Stakes Field & Barriers