Top five horses to watch in 2017
AS we reach the final month of 2016, a year that the racing industry and humanity in general will not soon forget, the time comes to look towards the future – to find the prospective hopes for 2017.
With one eye on the 2017 autumn racing carnivals, we have eyed off our best five horses to watch next year. The list features some up-and-coming types and also the more well-known thoroughbreds who are due for bigger and better things.
Races such as the Blue Diamond Stakes for the juveniles and The Championships at Randwick in April are fast approaching and futures punters should be making their bets now.
Futures betting is a good way to lock in value before the price drops and our first horse to watch in 2017 is a Blue Diamond hopeful, which is currently at nice odds for the feature.
Madeenaty
This two-year-old filly is a nicely-bred type by Exceed And Excel which was an expensive sales purchase.
The Hayes/Dabernig-trained runner was sold for $775,000 and it showed its worth on debut when winning the Listed Maribyrnong Trial Stakes at Flemington by 2.3 lengths.
It won in a time of 56.59 seconds, which is slick down the Flemington straight and its subsequent run should be totally forgiven. It finished third behind Invincible Star in the Group 3 Ottawa Stakes, but it was on the wrong side of the track.
Most of the winners on Melbourne Cup Day came down the outside of the track, but it was stuck on the inside where it easily defeated that division. It was still able to run a quick time before being put out for a spell with the Blue Diamond in mind in February.
Madeenaty is currently $5 with Sportsbet.com.au for the 2017 Magic Millions on the Gold Coast and it’s also the favourite for the Group 1 Golden Slipper on March 18.
It could possibly stay on home soil for the Blue Diamond Stakes at Caulfield, but cover your bases as it could run in multiple juvenile features.
McCreery
McCreery is a Chris Waller-trained import which has had nine starts in Australia for moderate success.
The four-year-old looked an improving horse when it first started off in Australia. It won well at Gosford in a rating 78-graded mile, but it didn’t quite live up to expectations in its subsequent three runs that campaign.
The son of Big Bad Bob came back a much better horse this season and when winning back-to-back races. It won the Listed Rowley Mile at Hawkesbury when beating Marenostro and Junoob, which came before it won the Group 3 Kingston Town Stakes.
It signalled its intentions with that win by beating Sir John Hawkwood which would later win the Group 1 Metropolitan Handicap.
Its run for sixth in the Group 1 Epsom Handicap was full of merit and it ran better than its $21 odds suggested when running second in the Group 1 Cantala Stakes at Flemington in October.
McCreery is currently $15 at CrownBet.com.au to win the 2017 Doncaster Handicap and although it’s a tough race to win, McCreery is heading in the right direction and it should give punters plenty of profits next year.
Fabrizio
The son of High Chaparral is a winner of seven from 11 starts and it showed its class by winning the Listed Premium Stakes at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day.
The Waterhouse/Bott-trained runner likes to go forward and create its own luck, which makes it very tough to beat when the pressure goes on.
Its worst finish came when Johan Victoire went too hard in the Group 1 Epsom Handicap. It subsequently finished 10th, but it has won both starts since that effort when the tempo was to suit.
The win at Flemington came over 1800m and it currently holds a nomination for the Doncaster Handicap over the mile where it is a $17 chance at Sportsbet, but we think it’s a potential stayer in the making and the Sydney Cup might be on the radar.
It’s a horse to follow in 2017 and with a win percentage of 63.64% and a place percentage of 72.73%, punters can rely on this runner.
Spieth
Spieth is a serious sprinter from the Bryce Heys stable which was unlucky not to win the Group 1 Darley Classic at Flemington.
The New Zealand-bred son of Thorn Park has won five from nine starts and it will be winning many more races in 2017.
The reason why we’re confident is because of its turn-of-foot which only the best sprinters possess. It is able to get itself out of bad situations by using its slick sprint and that almost paid off in the Darley Classic.
Its form prior included four consecutive wins and Heys knows he has a potential top liner in his stable.
The sprinting ranks are top quality in Australia with the likes of Chautauqua, Astern and a crop of three-year-olds on the way up, but Spieth deserves to be considered and it will reward punters this coming autumn.
Spieth is currently nominated for the Group 1 TJ Smith Stakes during The Championships where it’s a $8 hope at Sportsbet and we think that is good money.
Seaburge
It’s hard to believe Seaburge is only a three-year-old, but this colt still has at least one more season of top-line racing left.
The son of Sebring has had 10 career starts and eight of those have come at stakes level. Its biggest win came in the Group 2 Mss Security Sires’ Produce at Flemington as a two-year-old and although it hasn’t won since then, it has contested some of the toughest races around.
It ran second in the Caulfield Guineas behind Divine Prophet and it was good enough to run second again later that carnival in the Group 1 Emirates Stakes behind proven weight-for-age runner Awesome Rock.
It will be awfully tough to beat when it races back in its own age group and after a deserved spell over the summer, expect Seaburge to come out firing in 2017.
We are not confident that it will run in the Magic Millions 3YO on January 14, but it’s currently $21 at CrownBet.com.au which is terrific money and punters should continue to follow it in the Sydney autumn and the Melbourne spring.