The official Group 1 $1.5 million Neds Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) field and barrier draw are now out ahead of the jewel two-year-olds race of the autumn in Melbourne taking place at Caulfield Racecourse this weekend.
Jacquinot is narrow favourite for Saturday’s Group 1 $1. 5 million Neds Blue Diamond Stakes at Caulfield. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.
A capacity field of 16 juveniles is engaged for the Blue Diamond Stakes on Saturday including 10 colts and geldings and six fillies.
“It’s great to have a capacity field in the Neds Blue Diamond Stakes,” Jake Norton, MRC Executive Director – Racing & Operations, told Racing.com.
Following Tuesday afternoon’s Blue Diamond Stakes barrier draw, updated betting on the time-honoured classic at Ladbrokes.com.au has the Mick Price & Michael Kent Jnr. trained Jacquinot as the narrow $5.50 top elect drawn barrier 10.
Damian Lane retains the ride on the Rubick colt who flashed home late for a close fifth off a run in arguably the worst part of the track after missing the kick in the Group 3 Blue Diamond Prelude (C&G) over 1100m on February 12.
“He (Jacquinot) was probably in the part of the track in the Prelude that I guess the form now suggests that you didn’t want to be…him drawing out and potentially getting some cover is ideal for him,” Norton said.
Prior to that he won his debut by nearly three lengths over the Blue Diamond Stakes track and distance when impressing from barrier 13 of 14 on Boxing Day.
Jacquinot gets back over the six furlongs in the Group 1 this weekend and is looking to return to winning form and co-trainer Mick Price has ruled out any gear changes despite the tardy start in the Prelude.
“You could nearly guarantee it (a barrier blanket) will help him, but they do tend to dwell (in the gates),” Price told Racenet this week.
“It was very frustrating the other day how slow he came out.
“I’m not sure whether that’s just his colt mentality, sometimes colts don’t really want to work with you.
“I suspect there’s a bit of colt ticking away there somewhere.
“I’m training a colt and I’m doing a lot of thinking about it, and I still have no clean absolute finger on it, but that’s colts.
“He’ll be brilliant at the end of 1200m.
“He is raring to go, will be brilliant at the end of 1200m but I need the first half of the race to go right for him, for him to think properly and to come out at the right time.”
The danger occupying the second line of Blue Diamond Stakes betting at $6 is the Prelude winner Lofty Strike, an unbeaten son of former Golden Slipper hero Snitzel prepared by Cranbourne horseman Julius Sandhu.
A win by this colt would be a fairy tale for connections at the Lofty Thoroughbred Group with Lofty Strike looking to make it a perfect three-from-three start to his career.
He was good in the Prelude from barrier eight of nine at double-figures in betting, Jamie Mott retaining the ride this weekend from gate 13.
On paper barrier 13 may look problematic, but if ridden with cover the early stages the one-time favourite has the late speed to power home and get the job done again.
The outside alley (16) belongs to the Prelude runner-up behind Lofty Strike, Semillion for Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes who also saddle-up Sebonack from an ideal gate eight draw.
Sebonack is out to frank the form line out of a different lead-up, the untapped Capitalist colt having won the Group 3 Chairman’s Stakes (1000m) over the short distance at Caulfield on February 5.
Throughout history, three horses have won the Chairman’s Stakes – Blue Diamond Stakes double with: Redoute’s Choice (1999), Road To Success (2000m) and most recently Extreme Choice (2016).
Sebonack is at a current quote of $8 to be the next with the 1200m the only query.
The other single-figure fancy looking to be the first filly since Lyre (2019) to beat home the boys is the Peter & Paul Snowden-trained Revolutionary Miss drawn barrier 11.
That gate has produced two recent Blue Diamond Stakes winners with fellow filly Catchy (2017) and Written By (2018).
A daughter of former top-line sprinter Russian Revolution, Revolutionary Miss came off back-to-back seconds in Sydney to power home for an impressive upset in the Group 2 Blue Diamond Fillies Prelude in a slick time of 1 minute 3.87 seconds.
That is shaping-up as a highly-rating race and she is ticking plenty of boxes ahead of her bid to join recent fillies to do the Prelude – Diamond double including: Samaready (2012), Earthquake (2014), Catchy (2017) and Lyre (2019).
Success by Revolutionary Miss on Saturday will see the Snowdens celebrate their second win as a partnership following Pride Of Dubai (2015).
Peter Snowden also prepared Godolphin-raced winners Sepoy (2011) and Earthquake (2014) during his previous posting for the Royal Blue brigade.
Last year’s winning trainers Anthony & Sam Freedman (Artorious, 2021) chase back-to-back success saddling-up one of the potential value runners in Epaulette colt Daumier.
Winner of the Blue Diamond Preview on debut, he was good when third in the Prelude and looks well-suited to the step up to 1200m from a favourable barrier five draw for jockey Mark Zahra.
The late entry into the field having not been among the original nominations is the Peter Gelagotis-trained filly Miss Roseiano drawn in last year’s winning barrier, nine, looking to go one better than her Prelude second last time out.
The Blue Diamond Stakes is one of three Group 1 races on the Caulfield card for Saturday alongside the Group 1 $750,000 Futurity Stakes (1400m) and the Group 1 $750,000 Neds Oakleigh Plate (1100m).
