Punt Drunk: Marquand returning to Sydney, Hawkes sounds off again
It’s Friday eve, the weekend is almost upon us, and let’s be honest – we’ve all stopped working for the year and we just want Christmas to hurry up and get here so we can truly December. Thankfully, the racing still continues, and on Thursday there are five local meetings to wrap your head around. With a bit of luck, the team at HorseBetting.com.au can keep you in front of the ledger. It certainly helps when our best bet for yesterday salutes at $4 in the penultimate event at Ascot!
Aussie Tom coming back for Sydney Autumn Carnival
The popular English jockey Tom Marquand is making his way back to Sydney for the Autumn Racing Carnival and should be back on our shores by February after competing in the Hong Kong International Races and a stint back at home in the UK. The enigmatic hoop will be required to do two weeks of quarantine upon arrival, so he will have plenty of time to reflect on his maiden Group 1 win in the Ranvet Stakes with Addeyyb and their follow-up victory in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes. The trainer of Addeyyb, William Haggas, has suggested the pair will be reunited in some of Sydney’s best autumn races, and who’s to say they can’t go on with it in 2021?
Vow And Declare aiming for third crack at Melbourne Cup
How do you summarise the campaign that was for Vow And Declare, who finished 15th in the Caulfield Cup and 18th in the Melbourne Cup? We’re not saying he’s done just yet, but surely retirement is on the table. He managed to snare the Melbourne Cup in remarkable circumstances back in 2019 but has not finished better than third in any race since, including five finishes worse than eighth. If Danny O’Brien can turn his form around entering his five-year-old campaign, then fair play to him.
Hawkes convinced punters don’t punt after dark
The finishing time for night racing is back on the agenda.
Do you think they finish too late?
Michael Browell and Wayne Hawkes have different perspectives. https://t.co/PKGi9bvCTg
— Racing.com (@Racing) December 9, 2020
The outspoken trainer Wayne Hawkes has voiced plenty of controversial views over his time in the training ranks. Just last week, he said the Jericho Cup journey needed to be slashed in half. This week, he has come out and said punters wouldn’t want to bet on a race that started at either 9pm or 10pm. Now, we’re not saying he is completely wrong, but… he is completely wrong. Plenty of punters will bet on just about anything if they can, no matter the time of day. We’re a rare bunch, us punters, and the Moonee Valley Racing Club CEO backed that up by stating the final race at The Valley last Friday night, which jumped at 10pm, drew the highest turnover of all events at the meeting. So, Wayne, we think you may be a fair way off the mark here.