The 2021 All-Star Mile is here!
A stellar field has been assembled for this year’s All-Star Mile and at Ladbrokes we are delighted to have Star Of The Seas as our wildcard runner!
Our market suggests that this is a race in two between Probabeel and Arcadia Queen, but there is plenty of depth to this race and there are juicy odds available for a host of Group 1 winners.
We have analysed the entire field and our complete 2021 All-Star Mile tips can be found below!
Sir Dragonet
Sir Dragonet will return to The Valley for the first time since his memorable win in the 2020 Ladbrokes Cox Plate.
It is tough to know what to make of Sir Dragonet heading into The All-Star Mile.
He was never able to get into the race when he finished a distant seventh in the C.F. Orr Stakes first-up and there is an argument to be made that 1600 metres is still far too short for him.
It is impossible to back him with any confidence on the back of his first-up effort.
Behemoth
Behemoth returned to the races with a classy victory in the Durbridge Stakes in Adelaide before he was beaten as favourite in the Futurity Stakes.
This is his first opportunity at the mile and it will be interesting to see whether he is able to run out the trip strongly.
I have a big opinion of the horse, but he was beaten fair and square by Probabeel and Arcadia Queen in the Futurity Stakes.
It is tough to see him turning-the-tables on that effort.
Streets Of Avalon
Streets Of Avalon is back for another crack at The All-Star Mile and he is one of the extreme outsiders in the field at $71.
I’m not saying that Streets Of Avalon will come out and win the race, but I am confident that he will run better than that effort suggests.
He showed plenty of toughness to take out both the Australia Stakes and the C.F. Orr Stakes and he will be right there making his own luck right on the speed.
$17 for him to sneak into the placings is far from the worst bet in this race.
Mr Quickie
Mr Quickie returned to the races with a fast-finishing third behind Probabeel and Arcadia Queen in the Futurity Stakes and he should take good improvement from that effort.
The wide barrier draw could prove to be an advantage as he will get a long way back in the run anyway and Jamie Kah will be able to settle him in a nice rhythm.
I am confident that he will be storming home late, but he might be giving his rivals too much of a start.
Star Of The Seas
Star Of The Seas is the Ladbrokes wildcard runner in The All-Star Mile and five lucky Ladbrokes punters won our competition to be our ambassadors for the day.
If Star Of The Seas is successful in The All-Star Mile, they will split the ambassador prizemoney of $250,000!
There is no reason that Star Of The Seas can’t be in the mix.
He has been thereabouts without winning at Group 1 level over the past 18 months and he goes into this contest on the back of a good win in the Blamey Stakes.
It would not surprise to see Mark Zahra roll forward on him from barrier 12 and he will give our Ladbrokes ambassadors a very good sight!
Mugatoo
Mugatoo is one of the most interesting horses in The All-Star Mile and he will return to The Valley for the first time since his gallant fourth in the Ladbrokes Cox Plate.
He was never really able to get into the race in the Apollo Stakes first-up, but he was able to find the line strongly.
I still think that 1600 metres is short of his best trip and I’m not confident that he can mix it with the very best horses in this field over this distance.
He is under the odds at his current quote.
The Harrovian
The Harrovian is the fairytale horse in The All-Star Mile field and connections have admitted that no matter what happens on Saturday they are already winners.
The Harrovian recorded 11 wins on the trot in North Queensland and Brisbane – including the Recognition Stakes and Bernborough Plate at Listed level – and he never really got a shot at his rivals in The Shaftesbury Avenue.
This quality of race is probably beyond him, but it would be good to see him run well.
Regalo Di Gaetano
Regalo Di Gaetano is the extreme outsider in The All-Star Mile field and he is deserving of that status.
He has never shown anything to suggest that he is capable of winning a race of this quality.
Russian Camelot
Russian Camelot is the value runner in The All-Star Mile betting market.
He may not have lived up to the hype in the Spring, but I remain confident that he is a very talented horse.
His first-up run over 1600 metres in the Makybe Diva Stakes was excellent and a repeat of that sort of performance would have him right in the mix.
He beat Arcadia Queen over 1800 metres in the Underwood Stakes and he beat her home in the Ladbrokes Cox Plate.
Barrier two is ideal for him and any give in the ground at The Valley on Saturday is an advantage.
He is well and truly over the odds at his current quote of $8.50.
Arcadia Queen
**Update: Arcadia Queen has been scratched from the All-Star Mile.**
Arcadia Queen has been the early market mover in All-Star Mile betting and she is on track to start this race as a clear favourite.
There is no doubt that Arcadia Queen is a classy mare.
She returned to her best form when she beat Russian Camelot in the Caulfield Stakes and claimed another Group 1 victory with her win in the Mackinnon Stakes.
Arcadia Queen ran all the fastest closing sectionals in the Futurity Stakes first-up and that should have her primed for this race.
My only concern is whether The Valley is the right track for her.
She is going to have a number of horses in front of her heading into the straight and she will need luck in running at the right time to claim another feature race win.
Probabeel
Probabeel has established herself as one of the best mares in Australasia and she is deserving of her status as one of the favourites for The All-Star Mile.
She produced a career best performance when she won the Epsom Handicap in the Spring and there is an argument to be made that she has gone to another level again in the Autumn.
The big weight wasn’t a problem for her in the Bellmaine Stakes and she showed a lovely turn-of-foot to put away her rivals in the Futurity Stakes.
She is a bomb-proof mare that has plenty of tactical versatility and she seems to produce her best no matter what type of conditions that she faces.
You simply can’t knock her.
Shout The Bar
Shout The Bar is not the most consistent mare in the world, but she has shown that she is capable of a high-rating performance on her day.
After an indifferent start to her Spring campaign, she showed plenty of toughness to win the Empire Rose Stakes at big odds and went on to finish a gallant fourth in the Mackinnon Stakes.
She should take good improvement from her first-up effort in the Francess Tressady Stakes and she will make her own luck right on the speed.
I’m not sure that she has the class to win The All-Star Mile, but she will make her own luck right on the speed.
Greysful Glamour
Greysful Glamour is another horse that will go forward in The All-Star Mile and should ensure that the race is run at a genuine tempo.
She showed her real ability when she won the ATC Cup and Villiers Stakes during her Summer campaign, but she returned to the races with a fairly flat effort in the Frances Tressady Stakes.
It is tough to back her off that effort and this sort of race does look beyond her.
Still A Star
Tasmanian racing fans are hoping that Still A Star can repeat the heroics of Mystic Journey in 2019 and win The All-Star Mile for the Apple Isle.
Still A Star won the Tasmanian Guineas, Launceston Guineas, Strutt Stakes and Tasmanian Oaks during a stellar campaign as a three-year-old and she returned to the races with a win in the Vamos Stakes.
This is easily the toughest test of her career to date, but she is a very exciting mare and she does have more upside than a number of the other runners in this field.
Lunar Fox
Lunar Fox secured his place in The All-Star Mile field with his win at $301 in the Australian Guineas and he will go around at juicy odds again in The All-Star Mile.
His win in the Australian Guineas did come somewhat out of nowhere, but he does have a good record at the mile and he also won the VRC Sires’ Produce Stakes as a two-year-old.
I’m not sold on the form coming out of the Australian Guineas and I’d be surprised if he is able to score another upset win.