The Metropolitan

The Metropolitan is run October and is one of the key meets of the spring in the harbour city.

The Metro premier staying race during the Sydney spring carnival and past runners have gone on to perform highly in the bigger Melbourne spring carnival races later in the year. Two winners won the Caulfield Cup at their following start which should give punters a good insight.

Dominated by European imports in recent years, punters take serious notice of The Metropolitan which makes the Randwick feature a must-watch. It is a proven Cups form guide and the openness of the race makes betting on it worth while.

2017 Metropolitan result

Best bookmakers for The Metropolitan

Given the popularity of The Metropoltan, bookmakers open markets around July/August with the spring carnival firmly in mind.

Spring carnival races are the most popular with Australian and offshore bettors, so the bookies know the importance of not only getting the market up, but also offering the best odds.

Our recommended bookmakers offer the best odds in Australia and the promotions available are great value. Bonus bets and money back specials will be offered on all Metropolitan fixed odds bets.

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2018 The Metropolitan betting odds

After a sharp run in the Group 3 Kingston Town Stakes Brimham Rocks has been moved to the top of the betting market for The Metropolitan.

The Chris Waller runner is at $5.50 across the board with the online bookmakers, with stablemate Libran on the second line of betting at the $7 quote.

The third Waller runner Carzoff is on the next line at $8 while Big Duke is at $10 with online bookmaker Ladbrokes.

Recent Metropolitan winners

• 2018: Patrick Erin does it for the Kiwis
  Patrick Erin had failed to set the world on fire since crossing the Tasman earlier in the year, but a quality lead in run to the Metro may have gotten under the punters’ guard. Under a brilliant ride from Corey Brown, the $16 outsider was presented in the final 200m race to challenge the favourite Brimham Rocks, matched strides with the swooping Kiwi but just went down in a photo finish.
• 2017: Foundry puts himself into cups contention
  Foundry lobbed into Cups calculations with a tough win in the 2017 Metropolitan Handicap. The eight-year-old import for Robert Hickmott sustained a run around runners to beat the fast-finishing Big Duke and New Zealand entrant Chocante. The 11-horse field was covered by less than six lengths which doesn’t say much for the quality of the field, but it was enough to earn Foundry plenty of respect. Read report here.
• 2016: Sir John Hawkwood sets himself up for crack at Melbourne features
  Astern established itself as the class three-year-old of its year scoring by 2.25 lengths. The John O’Shea-trained colt by Medaglia D’Oro burst past runners with a big turn-of-foot and it gave James McDonald won of his biggest wins before succumbing to suspension. Included in the beaten brigade was subsequent group one winner Impending and quality filly Yankee Rose.
• 2015: Magic Hurricane stuns in Australian G1 debut
  Magic Hurricane was a John O’Shea-trained European import which started its Australian campaign with a bang. It easily dispatched a solid Metropolitan field by two lengths which included Beaten Up, Opinion and Junoob. It hasn’t quite been the same horse since, but it was only one of two favourites to win in the last 10 years.
• 2014: Opinion peaks in the Metro
  Opinion was always considered a top European prospect on rain-affected ground, but it managed to win on a good track in 2014. Another import for Chris Waller, the son of Oasis Dream wasn’t fancied at $12 in the betting, but it finished off too well for its rivals didn’t include much apart from second placegetter and Melbourne Cup entrant Araldo.
  
• 2013: Seville makes the most of weaker Metro field
  Another imported runner scored in 2013 with Seville. The Robert Hickmott-trained horse was $10 in the betting and it took advantage of a relatively weak field. Metropolitans are usually strong races, but this simply wasn’t a strong year.
• 2012: Gold for Gai as favourite salutes
  Glencadam Gold was an Irish import for Gai Waterhouse which loved to roll along in front. It cruised to victory by 3.8 lengths over Kelinni and stablemate Reuben Percival. It was heavily backed at $1.85 and it would later be well backed to win the Caulfield Cup, but again the field wasn’t strong and carrying only 53kg made it even easier.
• 2011: The Verminator wins without the favours
  The Verminator was one of seven consecutive imported winners and it didn’t have everything go its way. The Chris Waller-trained gelding was drawn barrier 16 and was forced to race three wide. Jockey Craig Newitt pushed forward and it kicked very nicely to win by 2.8 lengths over Hawk Island. It carried only 52kg in the 17-horse field showing that the lightweights are good to bet on.

The Metropolitan betting guide and statistics

The best guide is to back the imported runners. They have an incredible record in the race and that’s largely due to the timing of the race.

Imported stayers have become more frequent in Sydney over time and they have dominated The Metropolitan in past runnings.

Imported European stayer Sir John Hawkwood tasted success in 2016 and after four previous trainers in both Europe and Australia, the eight-year-old was able to run best over the staying distance of 2400m.

Only two favourites have won in the last 10 years (Magic Hurricane, Glencadam Gold) and there has been two double-figure winners with Opinion ($12) and The Verminator $20. Six of the last 10 favourites have failed to place which isn’t encouraging for favourites punters.

There have been some champion runners suffer defeat in the 2400m feature. Melbourne Cup-winning Doriemus finished second as the $2 favourite and fellow Melbourne Cup winner Saintly finished third as the $2.10 favourite. That shows that The Metropolitan is a great form guide to races later in the Melbourne spring carnival.

The Metropolitan past winners list