One of the key support races on the Cox Plate Day card in Melbourne this weekend sees the staying types face off in the 2015 Moonee Valley Gold Cup, betting tips for the clash found below.

A field of 10 remain for this year’s $250,000 Group 2 Moonee Valley Gold Cup (2500m) after Nigel Blackiston’s 2015 Melbourne Cup-bound mare Let’s Make Adeal was scratched due to a tendon injury.

Of the remaining runners the shortest priced in the Moonee Valley Gold Cup odds at Ladbrokes.com.au, who are offering Best Tote or SP + 20% on the full Cox Plate Day race card this weekend, is last year’s winner Prince Of Penzance ($4.20).

Darren Weir’s defending champ hasn’t won again in the last 12 months but is drawn well in gate four and is back to the Valley where he does his best racing.

So can Prince Of Penzance go back-to-back and bounce back in this year’s Moonee Valley Gold Cup or will a rival like market mover Bondeiger ($5.50) or the classy Gai Waterhouse-trained mare Bohemian Lily ($7) thwart his title defence?

1^st

#11 Bohemian Lily ($7)

Think at the price even from the wide gate Bohemian Lily is a classy enough mare to get the job done here. She has plenty of ground to get across from the barrier and Kerrin McEvoy will give her the right ride. Her lead-up form is impressive with a Group 3 Sydney second before her third in the Group 2 Herbert Power Stakes (2400m) at Caulfield. She is only up 100m in distance so that’s not a problem plus she gets in on the 53kg minimum again, a big plus. Fourth-up she will be at her peak and will give them something to run down in the finish.

2^nd

#3 Prince Of Penzance ([link text=”$4.20″])

Weir’s son of Pentire won this last spring before a Queen Elizabeth second and Sandown Classic third. Those were his best runs and his lead-up form this time in has been sketchy. That said he was only beaten 2 lengths here over 2040m in the JRA Cup before the Herbert Power eighth, and back at the Valley he’ll improve. He is two from three at the track and drops back from 59kg to 57kg, plus barrier four gives him an upper hand.

3^rd

#10 Bondeiger ($5.50)

Market mover ticks plenty of boxes on 53kg in barrier two for James Winks. The Danny O’Brien-trained War Pass stallion is an improving four-year-old who comes off a nice Herbert Power fourth, the form of which we are tipping to stack up on Saturday. Over this distance he was runner-up in the Victoria Derby last spring so has class and will be thriving over 2500m.

Whether you’re backing or sacking our Moonee Valley Gold Cup betting tips this spring ensure you lock in your selections online at Ladbrokes.com.au at Best Tote or SP + 20%!