Nik's Horse Racing Blog

Welcome to my Racing Blog. I will bring readers the latest news, tips and betting related content on Australian and some New Zealand races.

My focus will be on the feature races across Australia with most of my articles being opinion or news pieces.

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Please comment on the articles and give your feedback on my opinions, always open for a discussion or two.

Thanks,

Nik

In a year in which he has ticked off the Epsom Derby with Masar, UK-based trainer Charlie Appleby is striving to claim a Melbourne Cup for Godolphin. Appleby arrived in Melbourne on Friday morning to watch Jungle Cat and Folkswood run in feature races at Caulfield on Saturday. The two are the first of Appleby’s […]

Trainer Mike Moroney has Caulfield Cup ambitions for Vengeur Masque but fears the stayer may fail to make the final field. A poor draw in Saturday’s Naturalism Stakes at Caulfield hasn’t made the task to win a ballot exemption into the 2018 Caulfield Cup any easier. The winner of Saturday’s race gets a free pass into the 2400m-handicap on […]

Progressive imported stayer Avilius will not run in the Metropolitan Handicap at Randwick with Godolphin to instead aim him at the Melbourne Cup via the Bart Cummings. Avilius, who has won all three of his Australian starts including Saturday’s Group Three Kingston Town Stakes (2000m), was the 2.80 favourite for the Metropolitan (2400m) on September 29. […]

After discussions with jockey Damien Oliver and Grunt’s owners, trainer Mick Price plans to keep the Makybe Diva Stakes winner to a weight-for-age program this spring. Price had considered aiming Grunt at the Cups after Saturday’s Group One win at Flemington but the trainer confirmed on RSN927 on Monday the intention to head towards the […]

Kings Will Dream is assured a Caulfield Cup start but the import still has work to do if his connections want to run him in the Melbourne Cup as well. The order of entries for both the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups were released on Wednesday with Kings Will Dream exempt from the Caulfield Cup ballot, […]

The Darren Weir-trained triple Group One winner Humidor is the topweight with 58kg in both the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups. Humidor ran in both races last year, finishing fifth in the Caulfield Cup and 19th in the Melbourne Cup and will defend the Makybe Diva Stakes on Saturday. European contenders, Best Solution from Godolphin and […]

The Victoria Racing Club is keen to push for more local representation in the Melbourne Cup which could one day lead to it offering an incentive for a locally bred winner. It comes on top of a record 50 international entries, up from 31, for this year’s $7 million Melbourne Cup at Flemington in November. Leigh […]

Best Solution has confirmed a trip to Australia for the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups with victory in Germany’s most prestigious race, the Grosser Preis Von Baden at Baden-Baden. Having struck at the top level at Hoppegarten last month, the Godolphin-owned four-year-old produced another big performance to give trainer Saeed bin Suroor a third win in […]

Trainer Ken Keys has elected to delay the start of Spanish Reef’s spring campaign until the Dato Tan Chin Nam Stakes at Moonee Valley. Keys believes the 1600m-race on September 8 is a better starting point than the 1400m against Group One opposition in the Memsie Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday. Spanish Reef hasn’t raced […]

Godolphin trainer Charlie Appleby has trained the quinella in the Group Two Great Voltigeur Stakes with the winner Old Persian heading to the St Leger and runner-up Cross Counter confirming a trip to Australia for the Melbourne Cup 2018. The race was wide open three furlongs (600m) out, where Wells Farhh Go was the first […]