There are four Group 1 races taking place at Royal Randwick on Saturday including the Sires Produce, Australian Derby, TJ Smith Stakes and Doncaster Mile.
Our full 2022 The Championships Day 1 Tips & Preview can be viewed below.
Preview brought to you by Neds. Learn more about Neds HERE.
Race 1: Group 3 Kindergarten Stakes (1100m) 12:10pm
Tip: No. 10 Ginger’s Gal
Tough way to start the day with five first starters accepting for the Kindergarten Stakes.
The Bjorn Baker trained Ginger’s Gal is one of those debutant’s who is yet to taste defeat in four trials leading into her debut.
Both her trial wins have been on the heavy track and she is each way odds.
Race 2: Group 3 Carbine Club Stakes (1600m) 12:45pm
Tip: No. 3 Straight Arron
The Chris Waller trained Straight Arron looks a young horse with a tonne of ability.
He was narrowly defeated in a trial behind Imaging leading into his first up assignment at Warwick Farm.
He ran into one better that day but was doing his best work late and they beat home the third horse by a big margin.
Fitter for the run and ready to win.
Race 3: Group 3 Adrian Knox Stakes (2000m) 1:20pm
Tip: No. 6 In De Summertime & No. 12 Mamounia
In De Summertime has strung together three wins on the trot leading into her biggest test to date.
She has been beating up on some ordinary fields but she looks a filly that will be better over some ground and she represents great each way value at her current price in the Adrian Knox Stakes.
Mamounia won her maiden in impressive fashion at Newcastle to close out her last campaign and she was storming home late when resuming on the heavy track this time in.
She has had a trial in between runs to get her ready for this assignment and she looks a filly with plenty of natural ability.
Race 4: Group 2 Chairman’s Quality (2600m) 1:55pm
Tip: No. 7 Nerve Not Verve
Six year old mare Nerve Not Verve is a very progressive type of stayer who is rock hard fit coming into the Chairman’s Quality.
She made the leap into Group 3 company when running second behind Monegal last start and they beat home the third horse by a good margin.
This is a very open betting race, she gets in well at the weights and the heavy track should only increase her chances.
Race 5: Country Championships Final (1400m) 2:35pm
Tip: No. 6 Edit
I have a bit of an opinion of the lightly raced five year old gelding Edit who has managed three wins from 10 career race starts.
He won first up last prep at Tamworth before finishing fourth behind Art Cadeau in The Kosciuszko and he showed a good turn of foot to run second in the Wild Card at Scone last time out.
Fitter and ready to win should he handle the track well enough.
Race 6: Group 1 Inglis Sires’ (1400m) 3:15pm
Tip: No. 13 She’s Extreme & No. 10 Showcourt
The Anthony Cummings trained She’s Extreme was beaten less than a length behind the eventual Golden Slipper winner Fireburn in the Sweet Embrace Stakes before winning the Magic Night Stakes at Rosehill in impressive fashion.
It wasn’t one of Brett Prebble’s best in the Golden Slipper when he found a heap of traffic at a crucial time in the straight and he was forced to stop riding at one point.
She picked back up really well and found the line and Tommy Berry jumps back on the filly having ridden her to victory in the Sweet Embrace.
Fireburn may well have her covered but at the price, I’m happy to have something on each way in the Inglis Sires’.
Showcourt was flattened at a crucial stage in the Group 2 Todman Stakes but picked up really nicely when finding the ine just two lengths back.
He has had a nice trial win in between runs and has been smashed in early betting suggesting he’s ready to win.
Race 7: Group 1 Australian Derby (2400m) 3:55pm
Tip: No. 17 Sea Treasures
I can feel a real upset in this year’s Australian Derby with plenty of rain forecast during the week.
Hitotsu is a quality staying colt but I can’t be backing him without a run on this wet a surface at his current price.
Sea Treasures ran on the heavy 8 on Monday at Newcastle and although he won just a class 1/maiden race, I loved the way he responded when challenged down the straight a was strong right through the line.
He showed a really nice turn of foot when asked on the bog track and at $126, I’ll be having something small each way.
Race 8: Group 1 T J Smith Stakes (1200m) 4:35pm
Tip: SRM No. 2 Eduardo Top 2 & No. 9 Overpass Top 4
The punters have worked out just how good and tough Eduardo is and we no longer get each way odds for the horse in these types of Group 1 races.
He was excellent in the Lightning Stakes first up before winning the Challenge Stakes and his trial in between runs has him primed for this assignment.
The three year old colt Overpass has somewhat slipped under the radar with an unorthodox campaign but he is absolutely flying.
The son of Vancouver was beaten just 1.3 lengths in The Galaxy behind Shelby Sixty Six and meets that horse much better at the weights in this contest.
Top 4 at a nice price in the TJ Smith Stakes.
Race 9: Group 1 Doncaster Mile (1600m) 5:15pm
Tip: No. 16 Forbidden Love
If there is a more in form mare in the country than I am unaware of her.
Forbidden Love has gone from strength to strength this prep and for me it’s not necessarily the fact that she has won three in a row including back to back Group 1 races, but the way in which she has done it.
She cruised up to them in both the Canterbury Stakes and George Ryder and responded with a brilliant turn of foot when asked to put her rivals away both times.
The Doncaster Mile is always such an interested race and weights are so important and this mare is being asked to carry just 50kg.
50kg!!!
That is an drop in weight of 8.5kg from her last start Group 1 win where she beat Colette, a multiple time Group 1 winner herself, by over a length.
She is a weighted MORAL and only bad luck gets her beat.
Race 10: Group 3 P J Bell Stakes (1200m) 5:50pm
Tip: Boxed Tri 3/5/6/13/16