Horse Racing

One of the opening black-type features on the bumper 10-race Caulfield Cup Day card this Saturday is the $100,000 Listed Ethereal Stakes (2000m) which is due to be contested by a field full of 2011 Crown Oaks-bound fillies.

Scheduled to run as Caulfield Race 3 on Saturday at 12:45pm (EDT), the 2011 Ethereal Stakes final field features 14 three-year-old fillies lead by the Debbie and Grahame Rogerson-trained Dowager Queen.

Allocated the 56kg topweight of the field with Craig Williams engaged, Savabeel filly Dowager Queen comes off a last-start third to Streama and Hallowell Belle in the Group 1 Flight Stakes (1600m) at Randwick on October 1.

Running over 2000m for the first time, Dowager Queen is being tipped to improve with the more distance and is heading towards a crack at the $1 million Group 1 VRC Crown Oaks (2500m) at Flemington on Thursday November 3 during the Melbourne Cup Carnival.

In the latest 2011 Crown Oaks betting markets at Luxbet Dowager Queen was rated a $10 chance.

Markets for the classic are lead by Atlantic Jewel, Mosheen and Bliss Street – all of which are engaged for the $500,000 Group 1 Thousand Guineas (1600m) at Caulfield this afternoon.

Following Dowager Queen in the Ethereal Stakes weights for Saturday is Peter Moody’s Metonymy on 55.5kg with Luke Nolen booked for the ride.

All 14 Ethereal Stakes acceptors feature in the Crown Oaks nominations and betting.

Other Noteable Crown Oaks 2011 Fillies in the Ethereal Stakes Field Include:

• Roma Giaconda (David Hayes) – Magic Albert filly ran an eye-catching second to Golden Rose winner Manawanui in the Stan Fox Stakes before her last-start fifth in the Flight Stakes
• Fallen One (Grahame Begg) – Comes off a 1600m win at Kembla Grange
• Mo Vo (John Mcardle) – Nicely-bred Mossman filly yet to race in black-type company
• Quench The Thirst (Mark Kavanagh) – Encosta De Lago filly was impressive when running a game third to Perfect Punch in the Listed Hill Smith Stakes (1800m) at Morphettville last Saturday

Also engaged for the Ethereal Stakes on Saturday are the likes of the Bart Cummings-trained Gliding who will be ridden by Hall of Famer Darren Beadman, Anthony Freedman’s nicely-drawn Baptism in gate three, and Michael Kent-trained duo of Vittoria and Pentimento who have drawn awkwardly in barriers 13 and 12 respectively.

See below for the full 2011 Ethereal Stakes field and barriers.

Betting on the Crown Oaks 2011 will reopen at Luxbet shortly after the Thousand Guineas results are known.

Get ready for the action of not only the Caulfield Cup Day this Saturday, but also the other upcoming spring majors by signing up with Luxbet now and if you are a first-time depositing customer quote the codeword BONUSBET for a $500 bonus bet!

2011 Ethereal Stakes Final Field & Barrier Draw