The third edition of The Hunter, to be held this Saturday, November 13th, is jam packed with talent and has a capacity field of 15 + 4 emergencies. A lot of horses have come out of the Winner Stakes, while we have a fair few that are first up from a spell, however the most intriguing runner may be the European import, Top Ranked.
Looking at the market, Dabble has Lost And Running as $3.20 favourite, looking to do one better than his 1L 2nd in the Classique Legend (Winner) Stakes, behind Eduardo. That followed a fourth place in The Everest, highlighting the form he is in right now. Behind him in the market is Top Ranked ($5) and Bandersnatch ($7), as the only other runners in single figures.
However, it isn’t just limited to those three! we have dissected each of their chances for you! Read on below to find out runner by runner preview of the 2021 The Hunter along with The Shark’s The Hunter best tips.
1. Lost And Running (17) – $3.20
Jockey – Hugh Bowman
Trainer – John O’Shea
Lost And Running has really come on over his last two runs, coming fourth in The Everest before coming second to Eduardo in the Winner Stakes. However, he will have to overcome the top weight and a wide draw, meaning Hugh Bowman will need to be on top of his game.
2. Top Ranked (7) – $5
Jockey – James McDonald
Trainer – Annabel Neasham
While he may be asking for further, Top Ranked brings some nice European form into the race. He has run behind the likes of Palace Pier over in England and that form is clearly better than any of this, but after a few months off and a long trip over here, is he ready? The Neasham camp is obviously doing a lot right at the moment, and have said he has better form coming over than Zaaki did, plus he gets the services of James McDonald, but there may be a bit against him.
3. Gem Song (1) – $17
Jockey – Nash Rawiller
Trainer – Kris Lees
Gem Song is coming off an exceptional prep to start this year, having three runs with a win – ahead of Cascadian, a fourth behind Masked Crusader and a fifth behind Think It Over. All of those are exceptional formlines, given the Spring Carnivals they have just had. He also has two wins and two thirds from five first-up runs but all his form is on good tracks and there is a fair bit of rain forecast over the next 48 hours.
KEMENTARI is back and wins the Group 2 Gilgai Stakes. 😍
Who was on him today?@godolphin @FlemingtonVRC pic.twitter.com/4nhFhRYeSi
— Racing.com (@Racing) October 2, 2021
4. Kementari (13) – $23
Jockey – Joshua Parr
Trainer – James Cummings
Special K looked absolutely back with a win down the Flemington straight in the Gilgai Stakes but went up to Sydney and underperformed in both his runs there. Soft tracks are definitely his go, but he has a wide draw and may be a step behind some of the younger types here.
5. Bandersnatch (8) – $7
Jockey – Tommy Berry
Trainer – Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes
After finishing his last prep off with back to back listed wins, Bandersnatch is kicking off in a big listed race, The Hunter. He has to be a main danger given he is a perfect 1/1 at the track, has two wins from five first-up runs, has form on both good and soft tracks and Tommy Berry is on fire at the moment.
6. Signore Fox (19) – $26
Jockey – Brodie Loy
Trainer – Peter & Paul Snowden
Signore Fox was considered for the last The Everest slot this year but has returned two ok performances so far and probably justified being left out of the race. He does have good third-up form, 6:2-1-0, and has won both at the track and over 1300m, but would need to improve greatly to factor.
7. Standout (5) – $17
Jockey – Kerrin McEvoy
Trainer – Gerald Ryan & Sterling Alexiou
After three straight placings, Gerald Ryan and Sterling Alexio would be hoping that Standout finally gets over the top here. The massive positive for him is, based on the Winner Stakes run, he gets a 4.5kg weight swing on Lost And Running, despite only finishing a length behind him. That is a massive difference and he has drawn to get a nice run, but he will want it as dry as possible.
8. Dawn Passage (6) – $13
Jockey – Tim Clark
Trainer – Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott
The camp admitted Dawn Passage would be giving up a fitness edge to his rivals in the Winner Stakes, and then it didn’t help that he was caught three-wide without cover for most of the run. He will be better for that effort but has no second up stats, indicating he may hit a flat spot here. He does handle all conditions and has a win and a third at the distance, all he needs is Tim Clark to get him closer to the rails and preferably with some cover.
9. Roheryn (15) – $34
Jockey – Jason Collett
Trainer – James Cummings
It has been a prep to forget for Roheryn and there is no reason why he would factor in this. He does his best work first or second up and he failed to fire in his first two runs this time around.
10. Sweet Deal (16) – $31
Jockey – Brock Ryan
Trainer – John Thompson
It is hard to consider Sweet Deal on the back of her two runs so far this prep. Her saving grace is that she is a Newcastle specialist, with two wins and a second from three runs, and a 1300m specialist, with four wins and two seconds from seven runs. Can she compete against some much more credentialed horses, albeit up to 5kg lighter than some of them?
Big Parade wins the Group 3 Sydney Stakes under @JoshuaParr8! pic.twitter.com/Dwbuti8cer
— 7HorseRacing 🐎 (@7horseracing) October 16, 2021
11. Prime Candidate (3) – $17
Jockey – Robbie Dolan
Trainer – Bjorn Baker
Prime Candidate has had a fair go at it this prep, with three third placings from three runs, including in the Sydney Stakes when behind Standout, who is also a $17 chance (tweet above). He has to be a main consideration considering the odds, his prep so far, the fact that he can handle all track types and is 2/3 when fourth up from a spell. He gets a nice draw to shoot to the front and will definitely be in the finish.
12. Special Reward (2) – $34
Jockey – Glyn Schofield
Trainer – Kris Lees
While he has good stats at the distance, and the track, Special Reward can’t factor based on a 9th and 8th so far this prep.
13. Stockman (11) – $41
Jockey – Jay Ford
Trainer – Joseph Pride
Stockman may be one over the odds here. He finished last prep with two good wins, is 4:1-0-1 first up and has had two solid trials in the lead up to this. He has a win and a second from two runs at the distance and doesn’t mind a rain affected track. There are clearly a few that have better credentials, but it wouldn’t surprise to see him feature in the finish.
14. Countofmontecristo (12) – $61
Jockey – Ron Stewart
Trainer – Kris Lees
Only missing the place in two of your nine first up runs, including four wins, is nothing to breeze over. Countofmontecristo has some good stats for this race and has had two very good trials in the lead up, but is the eight-year-old up to the level?
15. Wandabaa (14) – $26
Jockey – Andrew Adkins
Trainer – Kris Lees
Wandabaa is such an honest performer and always seems to run a good race. She has never missed a place when third up from a spell and can handle all conditions, but prefers it wet. She has also never missed a place at Newcastle, which is a massive positive considering some of her rivals will have never been here before. She does have to overcome a wide draw, but if she can find cover, she will definitely be in there at the end.
CRIADERAS – All I’ll say is you would be crying 😭 if you backed it!
A High Bowman shocker, worse than the Farnan ride!— Horse Racing Global (@HorseRacingGL) September 19, 2020
16e. Criaderas (9) – $21
Jockey – Rachel King
Trainer – James Cummings
The first of the emergencies has the 8th best odds in the race, despite needing luck to get in. Criaderas has had just one run so far this prep and to be fair, it was disappointing. It was a classic Godolphin backmaker with too much ground to make up, but this gelding does have a knack of typically making up that ground. If he gets into the race, he will definitely be in with a chance, especially since he is 1/1 at the track and loves the 1300m.
17e. Brutality (4) – $71
Jockey – Kathy O’Hara
Trainer – Joseph Pride
Will need a fair bit of luck to get in and then will need even more luck to compete with them if he does.
18e. Never Talk (10) – $51
Jockey – Dylan Gibbons
Trainer – Kris Lees
While she is third emergency, Never Talk could be a danger horse if she gets in and the rain continues to come. She has great wet stats and is 1/1 at Newcastle.
19e. Pandano (18) – $126
Jockey – TBA
Trainer – Paul Perry
He won’t get in and won’t factor even if he does.
Final Word
This looks to be a cracking edition of The Hunter and while there are a clear top three in the market, this may be a good race to play exotics with. There are at least three horses in double figure odds that have serious claims at winning the race, which could make it interesting.
However, while there are some dangers in the race, the top two do look a level above. Lost And Running comes out of a strong edition of The Everest while Top Ranked has exceptional European form. When comparing those two, and also looking for some value, it is hard to go past Top Ranked.
He is a perfect 5/5 when first up, he has form on both good and soft tracks, gets a much more favourable draw than the favourite, and gets the services of James McDonald. If you have a Rocket Boost available on Dabble, we’d recommend using it to get Top Ranked’s odds even bigger than what the other bookies are offering, and we are more than happy to take that here.
Best The Hunter Tip: Top Ranked – Win ($5)
If you need more news, information and predictions, head over to our The Hunter page for all your punting needs!
*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of Dabble.
