Geelong Cup Preview and Tips 23/10/24

It’s the biggest race of the year in Geelong, so much so that there’s even a public holiday for those residing in the area! While the Geelong Cup isn’t a Group One (it’s a Group Three), there’s a stack of prize money on the line and the race acts as an ideal lead-up to the all-important Melbourne Cup.

Due to the fact it’s an ideal Melbourne Cup lead-up race, we see many high-quality runners take part in the Geelong Cup at Geelong Racecourse each year and it attracts the attention of racing enthusiasts right around the country. I love myself a little bit of midweek racing and it doesn’t get any better than the Geelong Cup on Wednesday.

I’m excited to share my Wednesday tips with you for the 2024 Geelong Cup and don’t forget that I’ll be back again later this week for all your Group One races tips for this weekend. All my best bets can be found here in this article, so let’s get stuck in!

Onesmoothoperator and Birdman look to have the barrier speed and the pair will likely fight it out for who is going to lead the race. Unusual Legacy, the current pre-race favourite, will likely settle just off the pace and he has fast closing speed, so watch for him late.

Another one of the more favoured runners in the market, Muramasa, should settle mid-field, getting some cover and hopefully the right gaps at the right time to give them all something to watch. The pace of the race is looking moderate, but it will come down to how fast the leaders want to go.

A nice and open field for the 2024 Geelong Cup means there’s heaps of value on the table, as long as you can find the winner! The market currently has three runners around the $4.00 to $6.00 mark and I’m siding with Muramasa, who is currently paying $6.50 with PlayUp, putting him on the third line of betting at this stage.

He was close last time out when finishing only 0.4L off the leader in third place behind Berkeley Square. In his run before that, he finished a respectable second in the So You Think Stakes at Moonee Valley Racecourse. He is also nominated for the Melbourne Cup, so a win here would do wonders for his chances.

I can’t go past the current narrow $4.20 favourite thanks to Bet365 and he certainly needs to be considered a genuine winning chance. The 5YO gelding comes through The Metropolitan fighting bravely to hold onto third place, a distance 3.5L off the leader, he was beaten by Land Legend and Zardozi in that one. 

The Metropolitan is run over the same distance as the Geelong Cup and on paper, that looked like a tougher race than this one. Think Unusual Legacy is a horse on the rise and will be one of the main contenders. Another runner that is also nominated for the Melbourne Cup, so watch how he goes in this one.

I think Francesco Guardi presents great value for the 2024 Geelong Cup and he is currently going around with odds of $10 thanks to Dabble, which puts him in as one of the more favoured runners in the market, that’s how open the field is at this stage. He has the class to have gone through and contested the Caulfield Cup, but has come into this one instead.

If you take his Turnbull Stakes run last time out at face value, you may not be too impressed. But he fought on bravely, despite not having much luck in that race. In the end, he finished in the midfield, 4L off the leader. He’ll need some of the luck he didn’t get last time out to overcome a wide barrier, but I’m expecting big things from Francesco Guardi.

If you’re looking for a runner that might raise a few eyebrows in the Geelong Cup, look no further than Amade. The old boy is currently paying $13 to win the race thanks to QuestBet. Amade won the Geelong Cup last year when going around with odds of $31, he’s much shorter this time and he is a genuine winning chance in my opinion.

Even though he is much shorter in the market compared to last year, he is still unwanted. Put in a decent performance in The Bart Cummings, which is a Group Three, finishing in third place by just 0.3L. The Bart Cummings looked stronger than the Geelong Cup, so I think Amade has to be considered.

In a race where there are lots of live chances, it wouldn’t surprise me to see a winner with double-digit odds. The Map is one runner who has to be considered and I can easily see her finish in the top three. She is currently paying $13 to win the Geelong Cup, thanks to Bet Right. The Map competed in the Geelong Cup last year but finished 11th out of 13.

Finished fairly strongly in the Group Two Herbert Power Stakes last time out after getting a little too far back for her liking. Jamie Kah books the ride this time out and there will be plenty of options from barrier two. Carries the lightest weight (along with about half the field), so that works to her advantage as well.

All my Geelong Cup horse racing tips and their odds can be found here:

Bookmaker	Tip	Odds
	Muramasa (win)	$6.50
	Unusual Legacy (each-way)	$4.20/$2.00
	Francesco Guardi (each-way)	$10/$3.30
	Amade (place)	$3.80
	The Map (place)	$4.00