Typically an afterthought for some of the Autumn Carnival’s better three-year-old fillies, the 2019 Australasian Oaks has drawn a smart and capacity field to Morphettville on Saturday.
Regardless of its legitimacy as a Group 1 race, there’s a first four to be found and the depth of talent that has accepted this year has led to a wide-open betting race.
Group performers, last-start winners and well-bred fillies all make an appearance in our 2019 Australasian Oaks tips.
The only Group 1 winner in the field and if Aristia brings anything close to her best to Morphettville on Saturday, she’ll be an easy Australasian Oaks winner. She broke her maiden in the Group 2 Wakeful Stakes before winning the Oaks five days later in spring and while she hasn’t hit those heights this time, there’s been a lot to like about her preparation this time in. The drop back from a mile and a half looks like suiting and the $7.50 that is on offer at publish looks sizeable overs.
Amangiri has enjoyed a meteoric rise to prominence, and she looks like starting favourite in Australasian Oaks betting. The daughter of All Too Hard smoked her rivals second and third-up this time before running a close-up second in the Group 3 Adrian Knox on Day 1 of The Championships. Her run for sixth in the Group 3 Frank Packer Plate a fortnight ago was only fair, but she’s at peak fitness for this and has the edge over many of her rivals.
Princess Jenni is seeking a hat-trick of wins when she steps out in the Australasian Oaks and will take plenty of beating. The High Chaparral filly clearly required the run when she finished midfield in the Group 2 Kewney Stakes first-up, but she followed that up with a bold effort to win the Group 3 Alexandra Stakes at The Valley before repeating the effort and result over a mile at Caulfield. The rise in trip looks ideal and she’s drawn a peach in gate 3 with D. Oliver in the saddle.
Nordic Symphony flew home at odds to beat a talented field at HQ on Anzac Day and a repeat of that effort would see her fighting out the finish of the Australasian Oaks. The daughter of unprolific sire Glass Harmonium has enjoyed a smart start to her racing career and has continued to perform and impress as Symon Wilde has raised the bar. Clearly this is her biggest test to date, but she’s got the runs on the board and is worthy of a crack.