One of Perth’s biggest race days is here, with Ascot playing host to the fourth running of The Quokka on Saturday and a cool $5 million up for grabs.
The 1200m slot race has attracted a slick lineup of sprinters, headlined by multiple Group 1 winner Jigsaw, while Rey Magnerio and Caballus add plenty of depth to the field.
Earlier on the card, the Group 2 Karakatta Plate will showcase some of WA’s top two-year-old talent, with previous winners including Whispering Brook and Amelia’s Jewel (2022).
Want the full rundown of all 10 races? Check out our 2026 Quokka Day Preview below.
RISE TO GLORY (6) looks just about ready to break through here for Susan Olive and her team.
He’s been his own worst enemy at the gates lately — slow away at Pinjarra and again at Ascot — but both times he’s absolutely charged late to make it interesting.
The Rommel gelding flew home for a narrow second here earlier this month, and stepping back out to 1200m looks right in his wheelhouse. Gets a slightly firmer surface too, which only adds to his appeal.
| 6. Rise To Glory (7) J: Patrick Carbery 56kg 59442T: Sue Olive |
SNITZALATTE (1) looks a touch of class on this lot after a tidy first-up win over the track and trip.
The Snitzel filly parked up third in the run before getting into clear air at the top of the straight, and she let down nicely for Holly Nottle, who sticks and makes good use of the 2kg claim again.
You could argue she’s looking for a bit further now, but with Stakes form in the book from the spring, she sets a decent standard here — and there’s still improvement to come.
| 1. Snitzalatte (3) J: Holly Nottle 61kg 277×1T: Adam Durrant |
WESTBOUND (5) was a beaten favourite when resuming over this track and trip last month, but there was plenty of merit in the run.
He got cluttered up along the rail early and ended up spotting them a start, settling last before working into it around the bend and running on for third, about 1.4 lengths off Desert Waves — who he meets again here.
He’s better off at the weights this time and should land a touch closer in the run, and with Tommy Berry jumping aboard, he looks well worth sticking with.
| 5. Westbound (4) J: Tommy Berry 56kg 131×3T: Michael Grantham |
HOLLER NUFF (4) looks another hard one to knock in the Peters colours.
The three-year-old son of Justify is chasing a hat-trick after stepping up to the mile a fortnight ago and proving too good, putting them away by close to a length off a smart steer from Clint Johnston-Porter.
Drawn to get all the favours from the soft gate, he maps beautifully again, and fourth-up now, there’s no knock on the fitness. Still trending the right way, and with bigger targets ahead, this shapes as a nice test to see him go to the next level.
| 4. Holler Nuff (5) J: Clint Johnston-Porter 57.5kg 4×311T: Michael Grantham |
ROCK ‘N’ THE JAM (11) is still lightly raced but looks to be trending the right way for Russell Stewart.
He was a beaten favourite a couple of weeks ago over shorter here at Ascot, but the run had merit after being caught four-wide throughout, still managing to stick on and finish fourth, around 2.5 lengths off Avoidance — who he meets again.
This is another step up, no doubt, but he did win impressively third-up over the mile here during his maiden prep. Back to 54kg and from a much kinder draw, he shapes as a genuine each-way play in a pretty open race.
| 11. Rock ‘N’ The Jam (3) J: Tyler Schiller 54kg 11×44T: Russell Stewart |
DANCEWITHME (1) gets in nicely at the weights with Holly Nottle’s 2kg claim.
Luke Fernie’s mare was a solid winner first-up over 1000m at Belmont, then went to Pinjarra where things didn’t quite pan out, finishing just outside the placings after covering ground from well back over a longer trip.
Back to 1000m now third-up, she should appreciate a more genuine tempo, and from the soft draw, she maps to get the right run in behind the speed.
| 10. Dancewithme (5) J: Holly Nottle 54kg 77×14T: Luke Fernie |
The unbeaten AURUM BELLE (7) has come up with a tricky draw, but that didn’t stop her last time when she powered on to score over 100m shorter here a fortnight ago.
Her sectionals late were strong, and they suggest she can go on with it again — as long as she doesn’t burn too much fuel getting across early.
This is her toughest test to date, no doubt, but with 1.5kg off, she looks to have the legs to give this a real shake again.
| 7. Aurum Belle (12) J: Brad Parnham 55kg 111T: Neville Parnham |
The wide gate is just about the only knock on JIGSAW (1).
He’s been the picture of consistency over the past six months, stacking his résumé with top-level wins, including the Railway over at Ellerslie and most recently the William Reid Stakes over 1200m.
There’s plenty to like about the spacing between runs here, kept fresh with close to a month between outings, and after showing real grit to get the job done last start, he looks to have every chance of stretching that winning streak to eight.
| 1. Jigsaw (13) J: Logan Bates 58.5kg 1×111T: Cindy Alderson |
REPOSSESSION (3) looks one of the hardest to beat.
He completely blew the start over 1100m a fortnight ago in the Group 3 Roma Cup, but made-up good ground late to finish within two lengths of Rope Them In.
His first-up run was full of merit when just edged out by Oscar’s Fortune, and he’s shown before he can win at this stage of his prep. From the inside draw, he gets every chance — provided he steps cleanly this time.
| 3. Repossession (1) J: Brad Parnham 58.5kg 94×25T: Chris & Michael Gangemi |
HORCRUX (2) looks set to run a big race fourth-up with Mark Zahra taking over.
Simon Miller’s gelding was a strong winner two back over the track and trip, then stuck on well for second on a softer surface a fortnight ago behind Sisu Warrior.
Back onto a firmer track suits, and from the draw he should get a nice cosy run in behind the speed with every chance to be there at the finish.
| 2. Horcrux (5) J: Mark Zahra 59.5kg 5×212T: Simon A Miller |