It’s all Good Times in Dubai
Favourite to make it three on the trot in G2 Good Times Handicap.
By McSheen, Friday 13th October.
A field of twelve will head out in this years G2 Good Times handicap over eight furlongs. The host city Dubai as always is a buzz with excitement and has welcomed visitors from a host of nations with open arms.
The Good Times handicap has been a race in the past that has produced quality brood mares and of the fifty odd fillies or mares who have competed in this race 80% are now retired and producing offspring. Last years winner Vanguard was sent to the popular Giants Causeway after being retired. This pairing has produced a filly named Valerious who had an impressive debut a couple of weeks ago running fourth with a quick SP of 73.
Futurestar looks to be holding the aces in this race. He has two runners in the favourite September Royalty and 9/1 chance Berserk Gold. Both are supremely bred 4 year olds who have been running in graded company their last few starts. September Royalty has won her last to starts in the G3 Del Webb and the G2 Chubby visa stakes and is rightfully the 4/1 on favourite. She has been super impressive all year and I will be extremely surprised if she doesn’t make this her 7th win for 2006. Berserk Gold will be right in the finish as well and don’t be surprised if we see a futurestar quinella in this race. She has been freshened since her last start third and we can expect to see her in amongst it near the post
Sledwith’s filly K’s Financier is another who is full of class. This royally bred filly is by Forty Niner out of a Seattle Slew mare. She has only lost one race this year and is a deserved 5/1 second favourite in this race. She is a horse that likes to sit midfield and with horses such as Lady Cynthia, Also Sweet and Berserk Gold also likely to be jostling for a midfield position, Sledwith will be hoping his brother S L Ledwith is at the top of his game when he jumps aboard for the ride.
I can’t split Lady Cynthia and Also Sweet. Both have been consistently running good SP’s in stakes races, picking up wins here and there and both are experts at the distance. The difference in age is probably the only thing I can see being a factor in this race,Lady Cynthia is a 7 year old mare who will probably winding down before a career in the breeding barn where Also Sweet is a 4 year filly looking to improve on her already impressive career record of 7 wins, 5 seconds and 4 thirds from 19 starts. Bookies have them both at 6/1 and there won’t be much space between them come the post.
A bowl and a mare is a 4 year old filly tackling graded company for the first time. I always like to see horses stepping up in grades gradually and squirrel has done just that with this filly. She may not win the race but I’d imagine a top 5 finish will have squirrel over the moon and it should be a platform for future attempts at a graded win. The step down in distance form 10 furlongs to the mile will suit her down to the ground and from barrier six she will get a nice run in the race. At 8/1 I think she is the best each way chance in a race full of horses at these odds.
Wally’s Dehere and Lilliputian are a couple of the youngest horses in the race. Wally’s Dehere is a three year old filly by Dehere out of a Forty Niner mare. She has been racing inconsistently in graded races having won the G3 Cheap & Easy stakes over this distance two starts ago only to run a ten and a half length 10th in the G1 Superfilly handicap. If she performs to her best she will be right in this race but her inconsistency will have many punters steering clear of her, me included. Lilliputian is having only her 10th start and I can’t really see her troubling her more experienced rivals. Her best performance however was over this distance and if you’re looking for a reason to back her I guess that’s it.
Torch Song is the outsider of the field at 35/1 and rightfully so. She has been running inconsistently in weaker races and it is hard for me to see this three year old daughter of Woodman featuring in the winners circle after the race. She is impeccably bred and I wont be surprised if she figures more prominently in these kind of races as she matures but I’ll be leaving her alone at the moment.
Silver Strav looks to be the one most likely to pop up and be amongst the money of the three year olds in the race. By Stravinsky she relished the trip over the mile in her last start and may just be peaking at the right time for emb2. She’ll be could be right up there if she performs as well as she did last time out and at 10/1 I’d recommend those punters looking to put something with some value in their trifectas to strongly consider this filly.
Little Thunder and Wondergirl Djava are both 4 year old fillies who have been going great for their respective trainers in stakes races of late but have been just found wanting when asked to step up to graded level. In a fairly even race anything can happen and I’m sure neither fastmouse nor peachman6 will not be at all shocked if their fillies win this race.
In one of the most evenly contested Good Times Handicaps seen for years this race will be one to watch for those who enjoy good close racing. With $225,000 up for grabs no horse will be leaving anything left in the tank come the finish line and a nose may be the difference between being a graded winner and just another placing.
McSheens Tips: 1st- September Royalty
2nd – Berserk Gold
3rd – K’s Financier
Good luck to all involved.