Coolmore Classic betting tips & strategy | Saturday, March 12

March 9, 2022 3:26 pm.

What	2022 Coolmore Classic
Where	Rosehill Gardens – James Ruse Drive, Rosehill NSW
When	Saturday, March 12, 2022
Prizemoney	$600,000
Distance	1500m
Status	Group 1
Conditions	Fillies and Mares \| 3YO & Up
2021 Winner	Krone (1) \| T: Tony Gollan \| J: Tim Clark (57kg)
Watch Live
Streaming Live at Sportsbet

Group 1 racing returns to Rosehill Gardens for the first time in 2022, and it is a quality field of fillies and mares to contest the $600,000 Coolmore Classic over 1500m. HorseBetting’s Sydney racing analyst presents you with his top three selections in the race, as well as a $100 betting strategy.

Chris Waller holds the key to the Coolmore, with six horses in the field, including the favourite Fangirl ($5.50) and second favourite, Espiona ($6). Millie Fox Stakes winner Expat is likely to make her own luck in front, while we expect to see Cap Estel, Vangelic and Shout The Bar all handy in the run as well. Last year’s winner, Krone, is looking to do what only Sunline has done since 2000 and win two Coolmore Classics, however she would be the first in that time to win the race consecutively. Find out who our experts are backing below.

We mentioned that Waller holds the key to this race, as he does in most races in New South Wales, but we have to agree with the statistics which are on his side. He saddles up more than a third of the field in this Saturday’s sole Group 1 in Sydney provided all six fillies and mares start in the race, and we are confident he can get the winner, but maybe not with who you may expect. Four-year-old mare Kiku is always around the mark, having won four and placed in seven from 15 career starts. The daughter of Zoustar handles all track conditions, having won on a heavy track and placing twice in four attempts, including a half-length defeat to Kementari in The Buffering at Doomben on New Year’s Day with 56kg on her back. She then contested the Magic Millions Fillies and Mares where she ran a slashing third with 57.5kg on her back before Snapdancer and Vulpine, before returning to Sydney and running fifth to Forbidden Love – a subsequent Group 1 winner – over 1400m at Randwick. She drops down to 51kg on Saturday which is a massive advantage, finds herself on a track she loves and has drawn reasonably well in barrier 11. At around $26 with Sportsbet, we are happy to step in.

We know what we are going to get with Mark Newnham’s Expat. The four-year-old daughter of Makfi will go forward, make the running and take some getting past in the straight. Expat has won eight of 13, with four of those coming at Rosehill Gardens from just six starts at the track. The mare won one of the main lead up races, the Group 2 Millie Fox Stakes, defeating Saturday’s Group 3 winner Belluci Babe. Tom Sherry has retained the ride in the saddle which is a big push, as he can get her to settle so well out in front, giving her every chance in the concluding stages. She is a model of consistency, and she will take plenty of running down in her favoured conditions. This is her chance to win her maiden Group 1.

Lighthouse has been Group 1 placed at her past two starts which is more than what we can say about any other horse in this race. With that form though, she has to carry a touch more weight (56kg), but it is 1kg less than what she has lugged in her past two starts. The Ciaron Maher & David Eustace-trained five-year-old finished off brilliantly behind Tofane in the C.F. Orr Stakes at Caulfield on February 12 over 1400m, before chasing Forbidden Love on the Heavy 9 at Randwick in the Canterbury Stakes last Saturday over 1300m. In the mare’s seven wins, she is yet to win beyond 1400m, so the 1500m is a genuine query, but how can you doubt the stable? Her wet track form is brilliant, Jason Collett rides wet tracks in Sydney better than most jockeys we have seen, and barrier six gives this big, strong, grey mare every chance to win at the top level.