Take 2 for Alexandra Park tonight

By Michael Guerin

If Alexandra Park races true to recent form for tonight’s $200,000 Magness Benrow Sires’ Stakes there may be less winning chances in the Group 1 than it appears as first glance.

Because while the race is the strongest of the three-year-old pacing fillies season so far the girls covering the least ground should hold a huge advantage.

Tonight’s meeting is take 2 after last night's attempt was postponed after just one race because of bad weather.  

In the past few weeks in northern harness racing the most obvious trend has been the biggest race winners almost always coming from on the marker pegs.

It was the case in all five Groups 1 here two weeks ago and two of the three held at Alexandra Park last week.

It was also the case when Arcee Phoenix won the $600,000 TAB Trot at Cambridge last month with the most jarring exception to the marker pegs domination being Leap To Fame in the $1m Race by betcha, but he is an exception to a lot of rules.

The reasons for the popular pegs are well known: the times being recorded these days are so fast horses coming wide often face having to break national records just to keep up.

That trend looks set to continue in tonight’s 2200m mobile  Sires’ Stakes and if it does it give an enormous advantage to Beside Me (R8, No.3) and most likely General Jen (No.2).

Beside Me looks the likely leader and driver Carter Dalgety says if he gets there he won’t be handing the lead away.

“She got a little too excited for her own good in the Oaks last start but that was 2700m whereas being 2200m this week I can let her roll more,” says Dalgety.

Beside Me was beaten in that Oaks by Arafura, who is in tonight’s race but faces a second line draw so it could be her stablemate General Jen who emerges as the main danger to the favourite.

General Jen was allowed to miss the earlier northern three-year-old features by co-trainer Hayden Cullen and she looks a fresh and happy horse when she bolted away with her Alexandra Park debut against older pacers last Friday.

If she can use her gate speed to cross to the markers and trail Beside Me she could try the same sit-and-snipe tactics Arafura did two weeks ago.

“I have no doubts Arafura is the best of our fillies but she may not be the best chance this week,” says Cullen.

“I can see General Jen getting the better run, hopefully on the back of Beside Me, and she really impressed me how she won up here last Friday.

“Arafura is tougher but if she has to race in the running line it becomes a lot harder for her.”

One horse who could be on the markers but not the best version of them is Southland filly Captains Mistress. 

She looks the real deal but faces being three or even four deep on the markers and if so could need an intense war up front to open gaps for her to chase down tired legs later.

Her trainer-driver Nathan Williamson also brings his one-start, one-win juvenile trotter Duchess Maria (R4, No.2) north for the $50,000 IRT Young Gun Final in which she will have to handle the right-handed track to down Redpark Warrior.

Tonight’s other major trot the $120,000 IRT Trotters Championship should probably see Meant To Be continued on his winning march but the reduction in distance from 2700m last start to 2200m mobile tonight gives him less time to overcome his unruly start point.

To see tonight's fields click here