Saturday Racing Tips - Flemington Racecourse 17/02/24

Racing comes back to Flemington racecourse this Saturday as the Group 1 races Autumn season is underway and we have an exciting set of meetings across the country but in this article we focus on the premiere Victorian meeting and I have run through the card and picked out my best betting spots for the listed races at this meeting, follow me below as I outline them!

(Note: Odds provided by Playup)

Selections:
#2 - El Soleado (NEXT BEST) - $4.20
#7 - Star Vega - $4.20
#3 - Aramco - $2.00
#5 - Akrotiri - $7.50

BEST BET - #2 - El Soleado (NEXT BEST)
El Soleado comes into this chasing a hat trick and has to rate as the leading contender here. He won last time out at Caulfield in an 1800m race a couple weeks ago where Zahra gave him the A1 ride and he finished over the top of them for a strong win. I think getting out to 2000m is positive for him and he gets the booking of Kah, should be a strong showing.

THE DANGER - #7 - Star Vega
Star Vega is untried at this trip but his last few runs suggest he should be more than up to the task here. He most recently ran in the same race as El Soleado at Caulfield where he was too far back to be a winning threat but was coming on strongly in the straight. The extra meterage suits him here.

VALUE BET  - #5 - Akrotiri 
Akrotiri has won half of his career starts with three wins in six wins and he stepped out to this trip last time out over the 2040m at Moonee Valley two weeks ago where he sped out to lead and was never challenged in the straight when winning very well, seemingly with something in hand. He shapes up well here and should feature in the small field.

Selections:
#2 - King Colorado - $3.10
#7 - Otago - $4.40
#11 - Hey Fat Cat (ROUGHIE OF THE DAY) - $11.00
#1 - Riff Rocket - $7.50

BEST BET - #2 - King Colorado
King Colorado was too outstanding to ignore here after he resuming in the Manfred Stakes on Australia Day a few weeks back. He got deep in the run but was able to find a gap in the straight and absolutely power away when running second to Brave Mead. Fitter now, a bit of track work between runs and out to 1400m are incredibly positive signs, I think he’ll be tough to beat here.

THE DANGER - #7 - Otago
Undefeated horse for the Price / Kent camp in Otago who shapes up very well here. He’s only had the two runs to kick his career off but he’s gotta be hard to knock after the big step up in competition he took last time out, going out to Flemington in a BM70 a couple weeks back and blitzing the field there to make it 2/2. He’s had a nice trial in between and we don’t know his ceiling yet but this will be another big step up.

VALUE BET  - #11 - Hey Fat Cat (ROUGHIE OF THE DAY)
Hey Fat Cat has been turned around quickly for the in form Laing camp after stepping out in the Autumn Stakes last week where he faltered at the start and was never a winning chance from there on out so that run can be forgiven and he deserves another chance here. The stable is going too well to ignore so watch what this guy does on race day.

Selections:
#4 - Imperatriz (BEST BET) - $1.95
#8 - I Am Unstoppable - $7.00
#5 - Espiona - $21.00
#1 - Private Eye - $5.50

BEST BET - #4 - Imperatriz (BEST BET)
Kind of hard to ever step away from Imperatriz in the last year the way that she just continues to own fields. Everyone has been talking about how she didn’t look herself in the Cranbourne trial a couple weeks back but I think she was just having a light day on that particular instance. Her efforts in the last 12 months make her incredibly hard to get away from.

THE DANGER - #8 - I Am Unstoppable
I Am Unstoppable is flying for the Kennewell / Yeomans camp and looks to be going better than ever since coming back to racing. His most recent trial at Cranbourne he was absolutely flying home and he’s got a very good record down the Flemington straight. The main danger here.

VALUE BET - #5 - Espiona
After we were on Espiona in the Champions Sprint last season it seemed as though she was really coming of age and starting to put it all together. She returns to racing now after a bunch of trials in Sydney and then a Jump out at this course last week. She will be deeper in the run but we’ve seen horses win from those positions before down the straight and she should be returning to racing better than ever.

Plan on betting on the races this Saturday? Betting online is surprisingly simple these days, and our Best Bookmakers area is the simplest way to discover the best online betting sites to follow our expert’s tips.

Playup is my top selection for Racing this week as they are providing some of the best overall fixed odds amongst the Australian bookies at the moment for racing. They are also very generous, often offering a number of racing promotions such as money back in bonus bets for 2nd and 3rd for a selected runner in a race of your choosing. They cover all Australian thoroughbred racing and are quite comprehensive in their international racing markets.

Join us on Saturday, Wednesday and Friday Racing tips, with articles throughout the week for the greatest free horse racing tips provided by our experts. Each week, our team’s racing tips highlight the most noteworthy race days and tracks, as well as expert analysis and best bets for selected races.

Additionally, we notify you of any significant scratchings affecting the races as well as any details about the track, notable jockeys to follow, or other factors that we feel are good to know. We will also cover any bonus bet or other promotions that are running that day and even have recommendations for other bets like multi tips, and our daily quaddie.
 
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Jye McNeil is an accomplished jockey, having won several black type races, including the prestigious 2020 Melbourne Cup aboard Twilight Payment. He has also received the Victoria Racing Club's Champion Jockey Award in two consecutive seasons (2019/20 and 2020/21), underscoring his reputation as one of Victoria's finest jockeys. He is known to perform exceptionally well on major race days, and he has secured a significant number of rides for this weekend's racing at Flemington Park Lakeside, I have outlined them all below:

R1 - #2 - El Patroness - $2.45
R3 - #6 - Manhattan Thunder - $12.00
R5 - #4 - Toronto Terrier - $6.10
R6 - #3 - Stormbolt - $4.80
R7 - #5 - Arizona Activist - $18.00
R8 - #3 - So Si Bon - $4.65
R9 - #13 - Tonneofgrit - $18.00

One of the most significant considerations in picking up multiple winners is the track bias, which favors horses that don’t get too far back in the run at Flemington Racecourse. As a result, horses drawn on the inside have a better chance of performing well compared to those drawn towards the outside. I have factored in this aspect when making my multi bets, taking into account the horses' respective preps and their drawn barrier positions. Follow below for a multi to track over race day!

Flemington R8 - #4 - Imperatriz - PLC $1.12
Flemington R1 - #2 - El Soleado - PLC $2.00
Flemington R7 - #11 - Hey Fat Cat - PLC $3.30

Total Odds = $7.00
$50 Stake = $350.00 Return!

Odds provided by PlayUp, sign up for a new account here to get started.

Our experts have curated a bet type information page which delves into all the different types of exotics betting, check it out for clarification on the different types of exotics betting or just to brush up on your knowledge.

Flemington Racecourse Trifecta Tip (R8)

1st: 1, 4, 5, 8

2nd: 1, 4, 5, 8

3rd: 1, 4, 5, 8

$50 stake = 208% flexi

Promotions are traditionally the primary way for punters to create an edge over the bookies, as they can save your cash when your runner fails to win, in the instance of Unibet they often offer 2nd and 3rd money back in bonus bets for a selection of races on the midweek and Provincial racing days. Coupled with their generous odds I have to put them as the top bookie promotion wise at the moment for Australian racing. 

If you are looking for the best promotions this week for Wednesday's racing I wouldn’t look past Unibet, often they offer odds boosts in addition to the money back promotions. Don’t forget to check your account as well for personal offers. 

Promotions often change so make sure you sign up at unibet.com.au to see what promotions are applicable to you and you may even be surprised to find some promotions that weren’t mentioned here!