2016 Kingston Town Classic Betting Tips

December 2, 2016 by Sports Betting Tips Posted in Horse Racing Tips

PETERS INVESTMENTS-KINGSTON TOWN CLASSIC 1800m – Group 1

The Kingston Town Classic is the final Group 1 race of 2016 in Australia and caps off the three-week TABtouch Masters Carnival in Perth.

We’ve already had two fantastic Group 1 races and this one is set to be just as good with 16 runners set to line up over the 1800m under weight-for-age conditions.

The Ascot track has played very fairly in the past two weeks and I think we’ll see another very even surface with the rail moving to the 3m position in the home straight.

We saw Scales Of Justice win the Railway Stakes two weeks ago after setting a moderate tempo out the front and it looks like he will get things all his way in the lead once again. He’ll come across from barrier 16 to take up the running, and I think Mackintosh will be the one to settle outside him from barrier 10. Stratum Star and Perfect Reflection may be the ones to settle 3rd and 4th from barriers 1 and 2 respectively, while Good Project will get a gun run from barrier 5, just as he did in the Railway. Kawi will settle 5th or 6th from barrier 4, Disposition will settle closer today from barrier 8 and both Vanbrugh and Tradesman will settle midfield from barriers 7 and 9. Itsahymn, He Or She, Heart Starter, Tick Tick Bloom and Bass Strait will all likely go back from their wide barriers, while Neverland and Dubai Escapade typically get back.

Overall, this race comes down to those best suited by weight-for-age conditions and I think there’s six horses that can win this, but one stands out more than the rest, and that’s the five-time New Zealand Group 1 winner Kawi. This horse’s effort to finish as close as he did in the Railway Stakes was exceptional. He was beaten 4.25L but he never got a clear run in the straight, and importantly, carried 2.5kg more than anything else in the field. He gets a 5kg weight swing on Scales Of Justice here, a 1.5kg swin on Perfect Reflection and a 3.5kg weight swing on Good Project. From barrier 4 he’ll settle 5th or 6th and over 1800m at WFA he looks a tremendous chance.

The mare Perfect Reflection looks the best of the local chances, in my opinion, and she can turn the tables on Scales Of Justice with a 3.5kg swing in the weights. The extra 200m will really suit her and from barrier 2 she should get a perfect run. She won this race last year and I think she’s more than capable of making it back-to-back Kingston Town wins.

I’ve mentioned already the task facing Scales Of Justice here. He is horribly worse off at the weights compared to the other leading chances but he did win the Railway in a canter. I actually don’t think barrier 16 is a bad thing here given the lack of competition for the lead. Whyte will slide across from out wide and look to repeat what he did two weeks ago. I think he’ll run a big race but with the weight I think he’ll find one or two too good.

The best of Chris Waller’s chances could be Good Project who ran 2nd in the Railway Stakes. Hugh Bowman sticks with him and more importantly, he maps to get an outstanding run just off the pace. He steps up to 1800m for the first time but the way he finished off in the Railway suggests the extra trip will suit.

Australia’s other leading trainer, Darren Weir has just one horse entered here in Stratum Star and I think this horse is the question mark in the race. He hasn’t produced his Group 1 winning form for a long time now but his latest runner-up finish behind Redkirk Warrior could be enough to suggest he will be competitive here. He draws barrier 1 and has won up to 2000m so in theory he should be well placed in the run to run a big race here. Weir has said during the week that he is only a rough chance because he knows how good Perfect Reflection is, having trained her briefly while she was in Melbourne.

The last of the chances is Tradesman, who is a horse I really like. This horse beat Scales of Justice first up and then ran 3rd behind Perfect Reflection two starts ago under these exact conditions (WFA) so with the extra 200m today he can feature in the finish. The question is whether he is good enough yet to win at WFA against these top level horses.

Kawi is the one I want to be on here and I’d be surprised if anything beat him or Perfect Reflection. Stratum Star is the one I am wary of.