Punt Drunk: Joel who? ATC slayed over Autumn Carnival acts
On this Friday’s edition of Punt Drunk, we take a look into just how far the Australian Turf Club missed the mark for this year’s Sydney Autumn Carnival festivities, siding with some questionable headline acts over a few who we actually know and love. Chris Waller continues to play games with punters who are just trying to get in early for Saturday and do some form, while Ben Thompson didn’t let the fairytale eventuate at Ipswich on Wednesday with a deadest awful steer.
BRING BACK DARYL
The Australian Turf Club has overlooked Daryl Braithwaite to headline Golden Slipper Day at Rosehill on March 19. The ATC has instead sent punters scurrying to Wikipedia to investigate the musical acts that were chosen to play at the six-week Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival.
Household name Joel Corry, who we were stunned had a Wikipedia page, will headline the entertainment on Golden Slipper Day. Racing bosses – who must have still been reeling after a spate of headline acts, including Taylor Swift, succumbed to pressure from the anti-racing mob and cancelled scheduled appearances in recent years – have now named an eclectic mix of bands and acts to play throughout the carnival. These include 2014’s favourite act Sheppard, ABBA tribute band Bjorn Again and party act DJ Hot Dub Time Machine. Take notes from The Valley, please.
Dates for the After The Last concert series, featuring a heap of bands we don’t really know, are:
- Soul Nights – Ladies Day, Rosehill Gardens, 12 March
- Joel Corry – Golden Slipper Day, Rosehill Gardens, 19 March
- Sheppard – The Championships Day 1, Royal Randwick, 2 April
- Bjorn Again – The Championships Day 2, Queen Elizabeth Stakes Day, Royal Randwick, 9 April
- Hot Dub Time Machine – All Aged Stakes Day, Royal Randwick, 16 April
Daryl Braithwaite's 'The Horses' like you've never seen it before.
We let the crowd take over… pic.twitter.com/2WfLbKeiIn
— Racing.com (@Racing) October 27, 2018
JUST PICK ONE, CHRIS
Dual-acceptors will forever be the death of punters, especially when there are multiple from the one trainer on a feature raceday. In Saturday’s Group 1 Coolmore Classic, Chris Waller accepted with six runners – three fillies and three mares – while he also accepted with all three of those fillies in the Group 2 Phar Lap Stakes earlier on in the day.
Those three in the Phar Lap joined another trio of Waller-trained horses including Gracilistyla, who was accepted at Canterbury on Thursday; and Roots, who was accepted in the Kembla Grange Classic on Friday. Of the three mares that weren’t accepted in the Phar Lap Stakes, two of them – Atishu and Kiku – were also accepted for the Ajax Stakes earlier on in the day.
He has now scratched some runners from races, so at least he isn’t waiting until Saturday, but surely when he is accepting with horses on Wednesday morning, he knows which way they will be going. It’s a nightmare for punters.
Happy dual acceptor weekend, let the games begin. 😡
— Ron Dufficy (@DufficyRon) March 9, 2022
THAT WASN’T VERY COOL, BEN
It was well documented that on Wednesday a horse owned by Shane Warne would be racing at Ipswich in a maiden. Sacred Oath was backed from $2.50 into $1.30 by the time they jumped, with a fairytale victory looking almost certain. That was up until the gates opened and they were racing.
Drawn the inside alley, Ryan Maloney’s mount copped a heavy bump caused by young Ben Thompson crossing too early from the outside alley, causing Sacred Oath to be put into the running rail and Maloney to fall off in an absolute sensation. Thompson’s mount went on to win the race, Maloney and David Vandyke were left fuming and the Warnie fans were left with their jaws on the ground, trying to work out how that could happen. It was chaos.
Both horse and jockey are fine, with Ryan Maloney passing a cognitive test on Friday morning and returning to the saddle over the weekend.
— Cannonball Dookie (@cptnskidmarks) March 9, 2022
Freedman appointed Sydney Carnival ambassador
The Australian Turf Club has not though outside the box, appointing Lee Freedman’s daughter Emma as Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival Ambassador. The ceremonial gig means Freedman, who would have attended the races anyway, will certainly be front and centre at at the six week carnival, including the March 12 Ladies Day, which will open the event. Freedman is a constant on racing coverage on channel 7 and won their ordinary show Dancing With The Stars in 2015. Freedman will have important duties before and during the carnival, including judging various Fashion on the Field events, which several of Punt Drunk’s authors are known to enter. So Emma, if you are reading, judge the guy in the grey fedora softly.
About Punt Drunk
Welcome to Punt Drunk – our daily column covering all the latest horse racing and punting controversies, dramas and headline news. Have a story or gripe or issue that just grinds your gears? Just hit us up in the comments or contact us page and our jaded, punt hardened Punt Drunk staff will give it the Punt Drunk treatment it deserves. Don’t expect pleasantries or typical racing media fanboy gloss from Punt Drunk – we’re on the punt and we don’t have time to bullshit; the next is about to jump…
