Golden Eagle | Tips & Best Bets

Golden Eagle: Tips and Best Bets

The $10 million Golden Eagle at Rosehill Gardens this Saturday brings together a very strong field of both international and local four-year-old talent.

GOLDEN EAGLE - 1500m, Rosehill R8

One of, if not the key contender is Japan’s Group 1-winning star ASCOLI PICENO, who has come up with the visitors draw in barrier 17. She arrives with strong form and accolades, more so than last year’s Japanese winner, Obamburumai, who stormed at them from nowhere.

The unbeaten French galloper LAZZAT, recent winner of the Group 1 Prix Maurice de Gheest, also comes here with high praises, and I would suggest has the softer set up to the Japanese galloper.

On the local front, Waller’s Group 1-winning JOLIESTAR has drawn well, as has Godolphin’s TOM KITTEN, with the depth of the race far more prevalent than a quick glance would tell.

Whilst ASCOLI PICENO is touted by many as the best miler in Japan, and I cannot really be against bar the barrier, I have sided with the local TOM KITTEN.

TOM KITTEN has been superb all prep, with arguably not much going right in his past three. He was fantastic in the Epsom behind subsequent King Charles III winner, CEOLWULF, and he was again through that same race, storming past the likes of FANGIRL late.

The big kicker for him here is drawing inside. He was dominant from barrier 1 in a HCP resuming, before drawing 11/12 in the Bill Ritchie, 19/20 in the Epsom, and 11/11 in the King Charles III.

I expect he holds a prominent spot in running, and with the better grounding both prep and career wise, I think he is strong value to the international raiders.