Eagle Farm Race 1 Tip #2 Northern Knight $3.05
I think the markets are upside down here, given Northern Knight defeated current favourite Boyles ($2.80) two starts back at Coffs Harbour by 5.8-lengths.
The Brett Bellamy trained gelding also gets a weight swing of 2kg on that run, so I can't see Boyles turning the tables on him today.
He went to Doomben in his next outing and was back in distance to 1200m, while jumping grades to a Class 5.
He ran a respectable fourth in that hit-out and drops back to a class 4 here. The step down to 1500m on this spacious circuit should suit him perfectly now.
He races handy to the speed, so regular jockey Raymond Spokes has the option of taking up the running or sitting just behind them in the small field.
He should be able to gain a break on them half way up the running and prove too good for them.
Tamworth Race 5 Tip #13 Nicator $7.60
The son of Nicconi returned from a 164 day spell with an impressive win over 1000m at Orange.
He defeated the promising You Rang on that occasion. That runner subsequently ran 0.3 lengths 2nd at Muswellbrook, with 2.4 lengths back to Dreamline in 3rd.
Dreamline finished an admirable 4 of 8 behind Godolphin's Flexible at Warwick Farm, only feeling the pinch late on a Heavy track.
The step up to 1200m second-up looks ideal for Nictator, who was strong in the run to the line after racing on-speed.
The blinkers go on for the first time today, which shows intent from the stable as they attempt to claim their piece of the $30,000 in Showcase prizemoney on offer today.
The query is the wide gate, but I'm happy to gamble that Grant Buckley will know what to do with the gelding.
With a positive ride and the addition of the blinkers, he'll prove very hard to beat.