2024 Caulfield Cup Day Tips & Preview

Sugar Coat is rock-hard fit fourth-up for Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman. 

The three-year-old by Exceedance was denied his hat-trick at Sandown last start, engaging in a ding-dong battle with impressive colt Ndola up until the 50m mark where his conditioning eventually gave way. 

That said, keep in mind he was 1200m up to 1400m that day and always facing the breeze earlier on in transit.  

With a run under his belt over this trip, and more importantly, some likable wet track form, he’s a clear on-top selection here. 

Tarpaulin is the one I want to be with here if we’re faced with a seriously wet track. 

The Godolphin colt was unlucky not to run a place in the Danehill Stakes at Flemington a couple of weeks ago, forced to check across heels around the 200m mark where he ran on okay I thought down the outside into fourth.  

The lightly-raced three-year-old has typically taken improvement into his second start, notably winning his maiden at Warwick Farm earlier in July by over two lengths.  

That win came on a very heavy track at Warwick Farm before he went on to win well facing similar conditions at Randwick a couple of weeks later.  

Drawn an inside gate now with Ben Melham taking over in the saddle, the pair should be very hard to hold out.  

Keeneland finds another thin race with improvement still to come heading into the Caulfield Classic. 

This three-year-old son of Alamanzor has been up since August when he debuted, going on to shed the maiden tag in his third start at Benalla with an impressive turn of foot over his final few strides.  

He stepped up to tackle 1800m at Flemington a fortnight ago in the Super Impose Stakes, taking control over the final furlong to draw clear down the middle and win with a fair bit left to give.  

Another rise in trip might test him on a wet track, but in carrying just 57kg, this isn’t a great deal tougher.  

Quite keen to see what Jenni’s Meadow can produce third-up over 2000m in this year’s Ethereal Stakes.

The Hayes-trained filly hasn’t done much in both starts since resuming, but I thought she was a complete forgive last start in the Edward Manifold when facing torrential rain from a very wide gate over the mile. 

We saw the daughter of Brutal come and out win a Stakes race at Headquarters by over a length to wrap up her winter prep, showcasing a good turn of foot after overcoming some late traffic.  

Based on that effort, I’m confident she can see out this trip if Ethan Brown can settle as one of the back markers nice and early.  

Niance goes on top in a race that is very tricky to dissect between the girls.  

Grahame Begg’s mare stamped herself as a potential star earlier in the year when winning three of her four starts, capped off with a memorable half- length win at Headquarters over 1200m.  

The Swiss Ace mare was only plain in a recent Cranbourne trial, but she quickly made us all forget when coming out and winning her jumpout quite well a couple of weeks later.  

She’s proven herself on wet and dry tracks and draws to do no work from barrier 3 under Jordan Childs.  

It’s tough to sack Benagil off one bad run at The Valley.  

The lightly-raced daughter of Manhattan Rain had her unbeaten run snapped in the Scarborough Stakes when beaten close to five lengths, a race that saw her shuffled back to near last after some early interference. 

She was never afforded a crack at them when held up badly turning for home, and although she loses the class of Blake Shinn in the saddle, it’s hard to look past her brilliant two-length win at Mornington earlier in June.  

Drawn another inside gate with both of those wins coming on rain-affected tracks, this year’s Thousand Guineas Prelude looks the perfect race for her to make amends with the winkers added.  

Rey Magnerio looks to be back to his best based on his first-up run over 100m further.  

The five-year-old gelding by Magnus let down beautifully to finish within a nose of Jimmysstar, form that obviously speaks for itself with that same horse coming out and winning the Weekend Hussler last Saturday.  

I think he may have won his last start if he wasn’t away slowly from the barriers, but this still shapes as a nice assignment to go one better with a solid jump out between starts and Jye McNeil retaining the ride in the Caulfield Millennium Sprint.

Very wary of the record Plenty Of Ammo has put together during her short time at the races.  

Simon Wilde’s mare resumed off a 40-week spell in the Listed Paris Lane Stakes at Flemington two weeks ago for second, a very encouraging effort after behind held up badly for a run along the rail, and then hit over the nose accidentally by a rival jockey’s whip.  

This is tougher again up to Group 2 level in the Tristarc Stakes, but she has stacks of improvement still to come after nearly a year off the scene, not to mention some likable wins on wet tracks.  

If Zardozi gets luck from out wide she should be in the mix. 

Last year’s VRC Oaks winner kept finding two weeks ago in The Metropolitan at Randwick, eyeballing Land Legend all the way to the line where she went down by the smallest of margins. 

Italian jockey Andrea Atzeni has been charged with 51kg, and he’ll only need to have this mare in the right spot just off the speed in the early going for her to be a serious factor in the run home.  

With heavy track experience and four solid races under her belt this prep, it feels like this is a four-year-old set to peak in search of her second Group 1. 

The Moonga Stakes is the perfect consolation prize for Gentleman Roy after coming off third-best in the Memsie Stakes back in August.  

The old boy gave a nice sight out of the turn that day, quickening smartly to shift across to the rail, and eventually running out of steam behind a couple of star horses in Mr Brightside and Pinstriped.  

He’s got the wide gate to contend with but has impressed in a couple of jumpouts between starts, while he typically goes well with some juice in the track.