Lightly raced local galloper Dubai Ruler looks set for a winning return in the National Jockeys Trust Class Three Handicap (1460m) at Queanbeyan today.
Photo by Racing and Sports
Dubai Ruler resumes from a spell after latest campaign where despite going winless in six starts he showed himself a useful type and raced consistently well.
Strong closing efforts in a BM 75 handicap at Canterbury and then in the listed Canberra Cup saw Dubai Ruler put up pieces of form that would see him prove too strong today.
Those two runs were over further than the 1460m that lays ahead of him here but he has shown that he can sprint well when fresh, running second in each of his two most recent first up runs, with the latest at Canberra in stronger company than he tackles today.
It is worth noting that his last couple of outings at Queanbeyan, where he is trained by leading local trainer Mick Smith, have seen him come out on top, both times in impressive fashion.
The Smith stable is always one to be feared on their home deck where in recent years they have run at a strike-rate between 13 – 15% and turned a profit for punters, this season at +34.7% POT.
The big danger today comes from last start winner Game Of Chance who runs for Matthew Dale, another stable that must be respected.
Game Of Chance has done little wrong in four runs this time in, all on Canberra’s Acton track, but there is little reason to think he won’t bring his form over to the turf today.
He will have to show improved form to be beating Dubai Ruler, though, and there is some query on him up in trip having run well below his best when stepped out to 1400m at the back of last campaign.
That could well have been a flat run at the end of his first campaign and it may pay dividends to look beyond that today.
Genuine chances look to be rounded out by the Paul Cave trained Blended who was plain last time but is certainly better than that and is capable in a race like this if re-capturing his form.
This will be a second trip to Queanbeyan for Blended having won handsomely at C&D when trained by Gai Waterhouse back in 2011.
Connections will no doubt be hoping for a similar result today.
