Australian Guineas 2024 Tips, Betting, Odds, Horses & More 2024

Welcome to OnlyRacing’s preview of the Australian Guineas held at Flemington Racecourse. As one of the premier Group 1 races in the Melbourne Autumn Racing Carnival, the Australian Guineas (one of the key Group One races during the Autumn Racing Carnival) attracts some of the nation’s best three-year-old horses. 

To go alongside the prestige and fame of claiming victory in the Australian Guineas, an eye-watering $1 million in prize money will be up for grabs. This pool of funds for the Australian Guineas mirrors other similar Group 1 Guineas races such as the Randwick Guineas. 

In this comprehensive preview of the Australian Guineas, we will take a deep dive into the field of competitors for the race itself and the projected winners. We also provide recommended betting strategies and the results of the latest edition of the Australian Guineas.

Additionally, this Australian Guineas preview looks into the history of the race and digs deeper into some of the top horses to ever win the race. This provides critical context for race day on Saturday the 2nd of March. Hopefully, this information assists you not just with punting decisions for the Australian Guineas race, but also with racing knowledge in general.

Be sure to keep your calendars clear for Saturday the 2nd of March 2024 and visit us here at  OnlyRacing.com.au for all your tips and betting needs. Flemington Racecourse is undoubtedly one of the top tracks in Australia. Let’s see who claims victory in the 2024 Australian Guineas! 

Money, money, money! Let’s check out the breakdown of prize money for the Australian Guineas: 

Hello, free horse racing tips! The team at OnlyRacing loves to provide their horse racing tips for each and every Group 1 race and they take their job of finding winners very seriously. At this stage, our experts are still waiting for more information about the potential runners in the Australian Guineas. Once they have more information, they will provide their tips!

Since you’re already here, why don’t you check out the Australian Guineas tips our experts put together for the race in 2023? Our expert crunched the numbers, looked at all the data and these are their tips: 

With such a lucrative prize pool associated with the Australian Guineas this year, it is no wonder the event has drawn some of Australia’s best three-year-old horses to Flemington Racecourse to compete. Perhaps none are more well-known than Mick Price and Michael Kent’s Jacquinot, who is the favourite going into the race and will be tough to beat. 

As is the norm on OnlyRacing, I will provide a best bet for the 2023 Australian Guineas, alongside tips for my next best runner, as well as a roughie pick for the 2023 Australian Guineas race. I hope these tips assist you in deciding what punts to place for the big race.

Australian Guineas Best Bet - Jacquinot

The overwhelming favourite for the 2023 Australian Guineas is Jacquinot and he has seen plenty of money back him in to claim victory this year at the Australian Guineas. A career 5-0-1 from 10 races, Jacquinot is a highly skilled colt out of Warrnambool with serious speed.

Calling Rubick and Ponterro his parents, Jacquinot is coming off back-to-back victories at Sandown Hillside Racecourse. Can Jacquinot replicate his recent success? Well, his ROI from those 10 career starts sits at an almost foolish 129%. Be sure to factor in Jacquinot regardless of who you think will win the 2023 Australian Guineas event.

Australian Guineas Next Best - Elliptical

Sired by the famous It’s a Dundeel, Elliptical is set to start the 2023 Australian Guineas as second favourite and he is still too long for my money! Having already claimed over $1 million in his short career as a three-year-old, the potential $600,000 prize for winning the 2023 Australian Guineas looks on the cards here for Elliptical.

Having won his previous race at Flemington Racecourse coming into the 2023 Australian Guineas, Blake Shinn will be critical in getting Elliptical over the line in first place. I will be including Elliptical in my multiples for the 2023 Australian Guineas, and I suggest you do too!

Australian Guineas Best Roughie - Holymanz

This roughie for the 2023 Australian Guineas has not seen much discussion from the horse racing community going into the Australian Guineas, however, I believe this three-year-old gelding is great value to place. Having placed in four out of a possible five career races (with two wins to his name), Holymanz is at some very long odds and I see him causing real trouble to the favourites.

Look for Mark Zahra to make a huge impact on Holymanz as he has done in the past at The Valley (where they claimed victory on the 3rd of February 2023). Hopefully, you join me in backing Holymanz as a huge underdog going into the Australian Guineas 2023.

So, there you have our tips for the race in 2023 but don’t forget to check back in 2024 closer to race day for our tips on the upcoming edition of the Australian Guineas.

Now that we have a rough idea of the top runners we are picking for the Australian Guineas, we should investigate where to place your bets for the big race. You could go with the safe choice of betting with your usual Australian bookmaker; however, you could be missing out on value!

It certainly does pay to shop around at different betting apps, especially if you’re thinking of betting on roughies. Many factors influence the odds of a runner, but different bookies have different processes, which is why you’ll sometimes see varying odds. It’s a no-brainer; you place your money on the market where you get better returns!

So, what other things do you need to look for? Well, there are a few key things that all the best horse racing betting sites have in common and we go into detail about all of them in our bookmaker review page. Our reviews make the process of choosing the best Australian betting sites for you as easy as possible.

Looking for the best betting sites bonuses is also an important factor because you’ll be able to get more bang for your buck! One bookie in particular, PlayUp, is one of the best betting apps because of their range of unique promotions on offer. 

Other good options when it comes to bookies include the likes of VicBet along with Bluebet. Again, they both have some great betting promotions and are known to offer competitive odds. If you check out our review on these bookies you will get a solid understanding of them before you go and sign up.

So, there you have some recommendations for our top bookies. If you want more, we can give you more! Check out our “Betting Sites” section above.

Every year, we see a jam-packed stellar field for the Australian Guineas and while the 2024 field is yet to be released, we are expecting more of the same this year! As well as this, we will list the Australian Guineas odds in our “Odds” section below, which will give you some indication of which runners are likely to be targeting this race.

Please keep in mind that due to the field not being released, the odds for the Australian Guineas are highly likely to fluctuate between now and the race. Many factors go into the odds for each runner and as more information becomes available, the odds will change.

So, while we wait for the 2024 Australian Guineas field to be released, let’s take a step back in time and see which horses lined up for the race for 2023:

In the 2023 edition of the Australian Guineas, there was a field of 16 runners plus one emergency, Japanese Emperor. In the end, two runners were scratched from the race, Osipenko and Lindermann which meant that emergency Japanese Emperor gained entry into the race.

Even in races as big as the Australian Guineas, scratchings are very commonplace. Unfortunately, scratchings can take place at any time, from the week of the race to just minutes before. But remember that if you bet on a horse that ends up being scratched, you will get your stake back.

When it comes to the final field, something else that is worthy of a look is the barrier draw. The barrier can play a major role in how the race will play out for each runner and certain barriers have seen more success over the years in the Australian Guineas.

Before you go on your merry way to bet on the Australian Guineas, it is a good idea to check out the form guide. The Australian Guineas form guide will provide key pieces of information and point you in the right direction for your bets. But do you really want to go through pages and pages of form? Not really!

Don’t worry, because the team at OnlyRacing have done all the heavy lifting. We’ve found some key form indicators that are important to note. Many patterns have emerged through the years and you should read on below to see what we’ve found out!

Favourites have a fairly solid record in the Australian Guineas. Throughout the last 37 editions of the Australian Guineas, the favourite has won 14 times. Add on top of this another 10 winners that have had a starting price of $5.50 or less. It certainly pays to look at the shorter runners in the market.

The winner of the Australian Guineas usually comes into the race with some sort of form. In recent history, only one winner has finished further than fourth in their previous race, which was Lunar Fox, who won the race in 2021 with mammoth odds of $301! The majority of the Australian Guineas winners actually finish first or second in their previous race, so it’s important to look into that.

If you’re looking into the lead-up races for the Australian Guineas, history tells us that the CS Hayes Stakes is worthy of a gander. There have been many horses in recent times that have completed the CS Hayes Stakes - Australian Guineas double, including 2020 winner Alligator Blood.

In the previous section, we told you how important the barrier draw is for the Australian Guineas. Well here are some stats to back it up! In the last 30 years, only three (yes three!) runners have won the Australian Guineas when starting from a barrier wider than nine. Lastly, only six fillies have gone on to win the Australian Guineas since 1986, but it is important to note that not a lot of females actually contest this race.

Given the fame, prestige, and prize money associated with a race like the Australian Guineas, there are a host of memorable and notable winners from previous iterations of the Australian Guineas. We will go through four past winners of the Australian Guineas, citing their victory and other career accomplishments.

Check out the four key horses from previous editions of the Australian Guineas below:

Zabeel - 1990

In the 1990 edition of the Australian Guineas, then called the Australasian Guineas, a New Zealand-based horse by the name of Zabeel claimed victory. This is a notable Australian Guineas win because Zabeel went on to claim first prize by a whopping six lengths! Zabeel had a great career of his own, but the true mark he left on the sport of horse racing was his offspring. After victory in the 1990 Australian Guineas, Zabeel went on to sire some of Australia’s greatest champions who won copious Group 1 events.

Mahogany - 1994

Four years after Zabeel won the 1990 Australian Guineas by a landslide, Mahogany stole the show in one of the closest Australian Guineas to date. Surviving a late push from competitors in the field, Mahogany won the 1994 Australian Guineas by a nose. Mahogany followed this up by winning 18 other races in his career, totalling over $2.5 million in winnings.

Miss Finland - 2007

A dominant win by Miss Finland in the 2007 Australian Guineas saw them become a fan favourite. Winning similarly to Zabeel 17 years prior, Miss Finland also boasts six other Group 1 victories over her storied career. But we will always remember her brilliant display in the 2007 Australian Guineas.

Alligator Blood - 2020 

A more recent champion of the Australian Guineas, Alligator Blood was one of the most hyped-up horses in recent memory in Australia. A victory that mirrors Mahogany in the 1994 Australian Guineas, Alligator Blood won the 2020 Australian Guineas by just a nose against Superstorm. In a disappointing turn of events, Alligator Blood was retired during the 2021 season as a result of injuries. However, alongside the 2020 Australian Guineas win, Alligator Blood won 9 other races across his 13 career starts.

The Australian Guineas odds are an important piece of the betting puzzle. If you find a runner that you like, but the odds are really low, there’s no value there and you may be better off looking elsewhere for value.

As the Australian Guineas is a Group 1, all the major horse racing betting apps will likely release odds well in advance of the race. Our favourite bookie, PlayUp, has odds live right now for the Australian Guineas and we will list them below so you can see who the likely runners are.

While the odds on this page are just a snapshot in time, you’ll find that the Australian Guineas odds will likely change frequently, no matter which horse racing markets you are looking at. We think one of the best times to bet on the Australian Guineas is when the market is “Before Noms” because this means you’ll get your funds back if your horse doesn’t make the final field.

When you bet on the futures markets you are also more likely to find better odds. Odds for the eventual favourite could be a lot higher at this time, so you may just get a lot more bang for your buck! Let’s take a look at the current odds for all the top runners in the 2024 Australian Guineas:

*Odds correct as of mid-February 2024.

Let’s begin with the key background information for the Australian Guineas, including the changes that have occurred to the Australian Guineas over the years. To start with, the name for the race, the Australian Guineas, is only about a decade old. This pales in comparison to the racecourse at which it is run, which opened in 1840.

Before 2011, the Australian Guineas went by a few names. For one year in 2010, the Australian Guineas was known as the Crown Guineas, after being changed from the Cadbury Guineas (2005-2009). Before then, the Australian Guineas went by a name for almost 20 years, beginning at its inception, the Australasian Guineas. 

In terms of the distance that the Australian Guineas runs at, it has pretty much always been at the one-mile marker (1,600m), except for three years at the turn of the century (1998-2000) when the Australian Guineas, then the Australasian Guineas, was raced at a distance of 2,000m. 

The Australian Guineas is a Group 1 race, it is undoubtedly one of the more prestigious races on the Victorian and Australian racing calendar. However, for its first year of running in 1986, the Australasian (Australian) Guineas was a Group 3 race! 

The very next year this was changed to Group 1 and has remained at that elite status ever since. It also must be noted that in 2007, the Australian Guineas (then Cadbury Guineas) was run at Caulfield Racecourse due to construction at Flemington Racecourse. 

That should have provided you with enough background information on how we have come to get the Australian Guineas in the form we know today. Now let’s take a deep dive into the minutiae of the Australian Guineas that racing fans should undertake to know.

The Australian Guineas race is a Group 1 race for thoroughbred horses that are three years old. The Australian Guineas is run at 1,600m around the famous Flemington Racecourse. Since its inception in 1986, the Australian Guineas has been a race marked on jockeys’ and trainers’ calendars during the Melbourne Autumn Racing Calendar, one of the biggest horse racing carnivals of the year. 

The Australian Guineas is seen by many as a sort of lead-up race to the Doncaster Mile and the Cox. Being regarded as one of the premier three-year-old horse races around Australia, the Australian Guineas always promises to be a spectacle for all racing fans.

The Australian Guineas is one major race on an Australian racing calendar that has over 100 key races. If you want to check out more races, including Group 1s and other feature races, check out our Group One races list. We’ve got all the major races of the year listed there.

So, what exactly went down in the 2023 Australian Guineas? For those not lucky enough to be at the track live, or would like a recap of the results, we’ve got you covered here at OnlyRacing. We go through full results in a table as well as provide a full race replay.

The 2023 Australian Guineas was won by the Ken and Bev Kelso-trained Legarto! It was a close finish in the race with second-placed Attrition finishing just 0.2L off the pace and third-placed Japanese Emperor 0.6L off Legarto. Japanese Emperor was actually the emergency in the Australian Guineas and was lucky to gain entry into the race.

Check out the full Australian Guineas results below:

You’ve read the full results table, now it’s time to watch the full race replay of the 2023 Australian Guineas! Check out the video below:

Want to know who won the Australian Guineas in the past and not just the most recent edition? Well, haven’t you come to the right place! Check out the table below which lists all the recent winners of the Australian Guineas, up until 2010:

We’ve got one final section for you, the Australian Guineas FAQs section! If you’ve got any last-minute questions about the Australian Guineas, hopefully, we’ve answered them below. Take a look: