The Ingham Preview and Tips 14/12/24

All the Group One races might be over for another year, but that doesn’t mean the quality racing has ended! We’ve got a sprinkling of high-quality races to see us out until 2025 and one of them is none other than The Ingham. While The Ingham might hold Group Two status, it has Group One-level prize money, with a mammoth $2 million available.

For The Ingham in 2024, we see one clear favourite, Gringotts. There is a full field of 20 runners in the race, so we should be in for an epic race. Can anyone overcome the odds and beat Gringotts? We will have to see! Don’t forget that along with The Ingham at Randwick, there is also The Gold Rush out West and I have a tips article for that race as well.

So, for the final key race of 2024, here are my Saturday tips! I’ve done all the hard work for you, going through the entire field and analysing each runner’s chances in the race. All-in-all I’ve put together five best bets for the readers of OnlyRacing, so there is certainly something for everyone.

I’m expecting somewhat of a moderate pace for the Ingham on Saturday. There are a couple of runners that have the barrier speed and they are jumping from out wide. Look for the likes of Mighty Ulysses and I’mintowin to cut across from barriers 20 and 22 (which will likely be cut down after scratchings or when emergencies are removed).

Uzziah also possesses some great barrier speed, but the gelding is the fourth emergency, so it is unlikely he’ll get a spot in the starting barriers. In terms of the current pre-race favourite, Gringotts will likely settle in as close to the leader as possible, looking for cover until peeling out when the time is right.

This is a tough field, tougher than I think the market suggests. But, in the end, I do think the market has it right and Gringotts is the one to beat, so he slots in as my best bet for The Ingham on Saturday. The 5YO gelding is currently favourite with odds of $3.80, thanks to PlayUp.

The gelding is coming into this one looking for this third win on the trot, taking out both The Big Dance and The Gong. Both those races were over the mile, which is the same distance as The Ingham. Tommy Berry is once again the jockey and he gets a decent barrier draw. It’s a difficult race, but the cream usually rises to the top.

It’s a pretty significant jump in the odds from the favourite to the runner on the second line of betting, which means there’s plenty of value to be found. For my safe bet in The Ingham this year, I’ve sided with Port Lockroy, who is currently on the third line of betting with Bet365, at odds of a tasty $10.

We last saw the 4YO claiming victory in the Group One Railway Stakes where he was going around with odds of $9.00. With a win like that, he certainly has to be respected. The stallion will have to carry one of the heavier weights but does get some help with the barrier draw and has the closing speed to give this a red-hot crack.

I can understand why Gringotts is the favourite, I do think he will win this race. But what I can’t understand is why we are getting such high prices for the rest of the field! I’m not going to bite the hand that feeds me though and I’ll be getting while the going is good. For my value bet, I think I’ve found one that could surprise a few come Saturday.

Steparty is currently going around with odds of $18 to claim victory in The Ingham, thanks to Dabble. It looks as though he has been improving with each run and he comes into this one with three third placings in his last three races, including in the Group One Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes. Another one with a good barrier draw and Blaike McDougall sticks with him.

Yet another runner that has been overlooked in the market is Poison Chalice. The 5YO will be on the seven-day turnaround here after competing in the Ballarat Cup last Saturday. He finished fourth on that occasion, 1.3L off the leader, Berkeley Square. For The Ingham, he is currently going around with odds of $15 to win, thanks to QuestBet.

I think the mile is where he does some of his best work, so I’m glad to see him drop back from 2,000m to 1,600m for this one. Only has to carry among the lightest weight in the field and draws barrier two, so there should be a lot of options for him. Just a smidge of luck and he’ll be right in this.

With a field like this, there are a lot of contenders for the best roughie. At the end of the day, I think Waterford has a decent chance of a top-three finish. At the time of writing, Waterford is going around with odds of $21, thanks to Bet Right. He is another that is coming through The Gong and he finished fourth, 4.3L off the pace, on that occasion.

Not sure the low barrier draw did him any favours last time out and here he gets barrier nine, which very well might suit him more. Jockey Regan Bayliss is in the saddle again and he is another that needs a little bit of luck, but with odds of $21, he is certainly worth the chance and I’ll be having a small place bet on him.

All my The Ingham horse racing tips and their odds can be found here:

Bookmaker	Tip	Odds
	Gringotts (win)	$3.80
	Port Lockroy (place)	$3.50
	Steparty (place)	$5.50
	Poison Chalice (place)	$4.60
	Waterford (place)	$5.75