Sequitur made her racing debut with a very tough effort at Ladbrokes Park last year and the form coming out of that race has been strong. It has been a while since she was seen at the races, but she clearly does have ability and she showed good early speed on debut. She can take up a forward position from the inside barrier draw and prove tough to run down.
I am happy to forgive Silverhawk for his poor last start effort at Flemington and his two wins before that at Werribee were excellent. The fact that trainer Mick Price has freshened him up for this contest is a positive and he strikes me as a horse that will appreciate The Valley. He is over the odds in what is an open race.
He doesn’t win out of turn, but Shaq is a very consistent galloper and he finds himself in a very winnable contest this evening. He showed plenty of toughness to win at Ladbrokes Park a couple of starts ago and the step-up to 2040 metres should suit him at this stage of his campaign. He is a very fit horse and he can return to winning form.
Expansion made his racing debut with an impressive win at Yarra Valley and he was only narrowly denied by the talented Hawkshot at Ladbrokes Park last start. There is no horse of that quality in this field and he has the speed to take up the running with Stephen Baster in the saddle. He will give his rivals something to catch.