The Darren Weir-trained Black Heart Bart is the early favourite of the Ladbrokes CF Orr Stakes 2017 nominations taken for the season’s opening Group 1 race running at Caulfield Racecourse this weekend.

A total of 17 gallopers make up the early entries for this season’s edition of the $500,000 Group 1 Ladbrokes CF Orr Stakes (1400m), which headlines the racing action in Melbourne on Saturday.

It is shaping up as a stellar CF Orr Stakes field this year with a host of runners scared off a Sydney run on the same day against returning superstar Winx in the Group 2 Apollo Stakes.

Futures CF Orr Stakes betting at race sponsor Ladbrokes.com.au on the nominated horses are led by Blackfriars six-year-old Black Heart Bart ($3) who chases his fourth Group 1 victory.

His latest elite level success was in the Underwood Stakes (1800m) at Caulfield last September.

He has had three runs since including the first-up second when two lengths off the winner Malaguerra at Moonee Valley on January 27 in the Group 2 Australia Stakes (1200m).

The $2.8 million earner will be better back at Caulfield where he has enjoyed three wins and a second from four runs to date, getting out over a more suitable distance (11-6-4-0).

Black Heart Bart also has strong form second-up (6-2-3-0) and looks the one to beat early as he looks to become the fourth CF Orr Stakes winner in six years to come out of the Australia Stakes.

Weir is after his maiden win in the weight-for-age Melbourne Autumn Racing Carnival feature and has a total of four CF Orr Stakes entries this season.

Along with Black Heart Bart his other possible runners are Lucky Hussler, Palentino and former Japanese-trained import Tosen Stardom.

Peter Gelagotis’s first-up Australia Stakes winner Malaguerra is also nominated for a rematch with Black Heart Bart in the Ladbrokes CF Orr Stakes field this weekend.

The Darley Classic winner down the Flemington straight in the spring has won three of his five second-up assignments to date, but from six runs over the increased distance of 1400m he has just the two wins.

The last 1400m run for the Magnus five-year-old was a ninth to Under The Louvre in Brisbane’s Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap in June last year.

Despite his questionable form over the metres, Malaguerra is being kept safe in pre-field Ladbrokes CF Orr Stakes betting occupying the second line at $4.

There are two other single-figure fancies among the nominees with the aforementioned Lucky Hussler ($6.50) for Weir and Divine Prophet ($7.50) for Team Hawkes.

Choisir colt Divine Prophet races for the first time since his Group 1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m) win over the mile last October.

The gun three-year-old has trialled twice since leading up to his much-awaited return and if successful on Saturday will be the first three-year-old CF Orr Stakes winner since the fellow Hawkes Racing-trained All Too Hard (2013).

Co-trainer John Hawkes also prepared back-to-back CF Orr Stakes champions with Yell (2003) and Lonhro (2004).

Divine Prophet is the only three-year-old nominated for the race this year and the sole entry for the Hawkes’ stable.

Another exciting entry nominated for a first-up run is the undefeated Michael Kent-trained Abbey Marie who also holds a nomination for the Group 3 Geoffrey Bellmaine Stakes (1200m) on CF Orr Stakes Day.

A lightly-raced four-year-old daughter of Redoute’s Choice, the mare hasn’t raced since her Group 1 Schweppes Oaks (2000m) win in Adelaide as a three-year-old in May last year.

Mares have enjoyed four CF Orr Stakes wins since 2010 including Suavito (2016) last year and the best fancied of the mares in the mix in 2017 is Caulfield Cup winner Jameka ($11).

If accepted into the field the Myboycharlie four-year-old will be first-up for local horseman Ciaron Maher out to improve on her last start 15^th over the two miles in the Melbourne Cup.

Other key nominees include last November’s Emirates Stakes winner Awesome Rock, Mick Price’s in-form Caulfield specialist Duke Of Brunswick and Lindsay Park’s Toorka Handicap champ He’s Our Rokkii.

Check out the full Ladbrokes CF Orr Stakes 2017 nominations below and then head to Ladbrokes.com.au to back your early fancies at all-in prices.

2017 Ladbrokes CF Orr Stakes Nominations

Caulfield Racecourse – 11/02/2017

#	Form (Last 10)	Horse	Sex	Age	Trainer	Hcp. Rating
1	111x	ABBEY MARIE	M	4	Michael Kent	97
2	0x3x00352x	AROD (IRE)	H	6	Chris Waller	108
3	20x015551x	AWESOME ROCK	H	5	Leon & Troy Corstens	113
4	12x12129x2	BLACK HEART BART	G	6	Darren Weir	113
5	5x13x1421x	DIVINE PROPHET	C	3	Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes	105
6	422124×431	DUKE OF BRUNSWICK	G	5	Mick Price	94
7	6706116×11	ECUADOR (NZ)	G	7	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott	109
8	x527171211	GRANDE ROSSO	G	5	David & B Hayes & T Dabernig	100
9	1211x1110x	HE’S OUR ROKKII (NZ)	G	4	David & B Hayes & T Dabernig	108
10	24x471210x	JAMEKA	M	4	Ciaron Maher	113
11	x129x791x7	LUCKY HUSSLER	G	7	Darren Weir	112
12	1619x215x1	MALAGUERRA	G	5	Peter Gelagotis	113
13	3419x1030x	MISS ROSE DE LAGO	M	6	Danny O’Brien	104
14	2x451008x4	PALENTINO	H	4	Darren Weir	111
15	113x02303x	TALLY	G	4	John O’Shea	104
16	0x51709x4x	TOSEN STARDOM (JPN)	H	6	Darren Weir	108
17	x4160x88x7	TURN ME LOOSE (NZ)	H	5	Murray Baker & Andrew Forsman	112