Friday night punters are treated to an entrée ahead of the Cox Plate the following day with Moonee Valley hosting the 2017 Ladbrokes Manikato Stakes, a full form guide analysis and betting preview on the sprint feature detailed below.

Firming favourite Vega Magic has outstanding form over the 2017 Ladbrokes Manikato Stakes distance. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.

Due to jump as Moonee Valley Race 7 at 9:30pm (AEDT) this season’s Group 1 $1 million Ladbrokes Manikato Stakes (1200m) is shaping up as a mini The Everest with a trio of top sprinters backing up out of the $10 million Sydney showdown.

Runner-up in The Everest after a luckless run was the Lindsay Park-trained Vega Magic, a dual Group 1 winner who gets things his way from barrier one on Friday evening.

Vega Magic dominates Manikato Stakes betting at Ladbrokes.com.au to return to winning form at his first look at The Valley paying $2.25.

The danger according to the Ladbrokes Manikato Stakes odds at $5 and firming is the Benjamin Smith-trained In Her Time.

The in-form mare missed out on a bid at The Everest, but her excellent Sydney Stakes success at the same track and distance on the same day suggested she would have been competitive and she gets a chance to prove that here.

Below we take a look over the complete 2017 Ladbrokes Manikato Stakes Form Guide, betting history and statistics to uncover any value in the race before you head to Ladbrokes.com.au for the top Cox Plate eve markets.

2017 Manikato Stakes Form Facts & Betting Stats

• Last year’s Manikato Stakes winner was the Gary Portelli-trained seven-year-old Rebel Dane (2016) who came off a seventh in Sydney’s Group 2 Premiere Stakes (1200m), jumped from barrier 4 (of 10) with Ben Melham aboard the upset $61 winner who was lining-up in the race for the fourth time
• A previous Manikato Stakes winner lines-up in the 2017 field with #1 Chautauqua ($7.50) having won in 2015 before a seventh in the race last year
• Chautauqua co-trainer John Hawkes also won the race with Spanish Mix (1994) and the Hawkes Racing team are the only previous Manikato Stakes winning trainers with a starter on Friday night
• The only previous Manikato Stakes winning jockey with a ride in 2017 is Damien Oliver (2) on #3 Malaguerra ($17)

• Last year’s winning barrier (4) has produced five Manikato Stakes winners (since 1983) and is drawn this year by #10 Viddora ($16)
• The last time successive Manikato Stakes champions saluted from the same gate was 2009-11 when all three winners jumped from the inside alley
• #6 Voodoo Lad ($26) is drawn the inside barrier (1) in the 2017 Manikato Stakes field
• From 2005-2016 four of the 12 winners jumped from a double-digit barrier most recently Buffering (10 of 12 in 2013)
• Two of those won from the outside barrier with Spark Of Life (12 of 12 in 2005) and Miss Andretti (13 of 13 in 2006)
• The hopefuls drawn wide in the race this year are #1 Chautauqua (10 of 11) and #3 Malaguerra (11 of 11)
• From 2006-2016 six of the 11 Manikato Stakes favourites saluted for the punters most recently Lankan Rupee ($4 in 2014) and Chautauqua ($2.50 in 2015)
• #2 Vega Magic ($2.40 into $2.25) is the firm favourite in Manikato Stakes 2017 betting
• In the past 15 years only two horses have saluted at double-figure Manikato Stakes odds
• Along with this year’s favourite the other single-figure chances on Friday are #9 In Her Time ($5) and #1 Chautauqua ($7.50)

• Since 1994 nine mares have beaten the boys in the Manikato Stakes results most recently Sea Siren (2012)
• The mares in the 2017 Manikato Stakes field are: #8 English ($13), #9 In Her Time ($5), #10 Viddora ($16) and #11 Super Cash ($19)
• In the past 11 years five last-start winners have won the Manikato Stakes
• The last-start winners in the race this season are: #9 In Her Time (Listed Sydney Stakes, 1200m, Randwick, 14/10/2017) and #11 Super Cash (Group 2 Schillaci Stakes (1100m)
• In the past 18 years only two Manikato Stakes winners finished worse than third in their lead-up run; this year that rules out #1 Chautauqua (The Everest 4^th), #3 Malaguerra (Moir Stakes 7^th), #4 Hey Doc (Makybe Diva Stakes 10^th), Voodoo Lad (Moir Stakes 5^th) and English (The Everest 6^th)
• That leaves the two last start winners along with #2 Vega Magic (The Everest 2^nd), #5 Rock Magic (Schillaci Stakes 3^rd) and #10 Viddora (Moir Stakes 2^nd)

• The Moir Stakes has produced two of the past four Manikato Stakes winners with Buffering (2013) and Lankan Rupee (2014) both improving on a lead-up second; that bodes well this year for Moir Stakes runner-up #10 Viddora
• Since 2005 six of the 12 Manikato Stakes winners saluted in their five-year-old season; the 5YOs in the mix this year are: #2 Vega Magic, #7 Spieth ($21) along with the four aforementioned mares #8 English, #9 In Her Time, #10 Viddora and #11 Super Cash
• The highest Win Rate of the field belongs to #2 Vega Magic (67%)
• The best Place Rate of the field belongs to #2 Vega Magic (89%) followed by #6 Voodoo Lad (79%) and #1 Chautauqua (77%)
• The horses with the best previous form at the Moonee Valley track are: #1 Chautauqua (4: 2-0-0), #4 Hey Doc (2: 2-0-0), #6 Voodoo Lad (3: 2-0-0), #3 Malaguerra (3: 1-0-0) and #10 Viddora (4: 0-2-1)
• The horses with the best form over the 1200m distance are: #2 Vega Magic (13: 9-2-1), #1 Chautauqua (19: 8-6-1), #3 Malaguerra (11: 6-1-0), #9 In Her Time (7: 4-1-0), #6 Voodoo Lad (10: 3-4-1) and #5 Rock Magic (14: 3-2-2)

Stay tuned for our insider Ladbrokes Manikato Stakes 2017 betting tips, checking out the complete race form guide provided by Ladbrokes.com.au below in the meantime.