The Julius Sandhu-trained youngster Lofty Strike is tipped to return to winning form and beat home the older sprinters when he lines-up as favourite in 2023 The Goodwood betting in Adelaide this weekend.

Lofty Strike is the well-backed favourite to win Adelaide’s 2023 The Goodwood this weekend. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.

The action of the Adelaide Autumn Racing Carnival continues on Saturday with Morphettville Racecourse host to the Group 1 $502,250 The Goodwood (1200m).

The Goodwood field features a bumper line-up of gallopers with markets at Ladbrokes.com.au led by Snitzel colt Lofty Strike at $3.30.

Jamie Mott has the ride from gate 10 on the multiple Group 1 place-getter who is out to be the first three-year-old The Goodwood winner since the filly Lone Rock back in 2011.

Earlier in the autumn Lofty Strike was excellent running second in both the Group 1 Oakleigh Plate (1100m) and Flemington’s Group 1 Newmarket Handicap (1200m).

Things went amiss when he was unsuited to the Heavy (9) Randwick track on April 1 with the horse struggling in the going and running a distant eighth to I Wish I Win, who had previously run third in the Newmarket, in the Group 1 TJ Smith Stakes (1200m).

Lofty Strike is now tipped to return to better form heading to South Australia for The Goodwood where he chases his first win over further than 1100m.

Current The Goodwood betting has just two other sprinters under $10 for the win with the early market mover Zapateo into $5.50 and the in-form Kallos a danger at $8 both prepared by James Cummings for Godolphin.

Brazen Beau mare Zapateo enjoyed back-to-back Group wins in Sydney earlier this prep including her good 2.4 length victory in the Group 2 Sapphire Stakes (1200m).

She then headed to Morphettville for the Group 1 Robert Sangster Stakes (1200m) where she finished an eye-catching third under a length off the winner Ruthless Dame in a key The Goodwood lead-up.

Her stablemate Kallos meanwhile is flying chasing a third win on the bounce here drawn a treat in barrier four with Ben Melham to ride the four-year-old son of Medaglia D’Oro.

His latest run was at Morphettville Parks on April 22 when winning the Group 3 RN Irwin Stakes (1100m) with 58.5kg, and he will enjoy coming back to 57kg here for his Group 1 test.

Cummings won The Goodwood back in 2020 with Trekking and also saddles-up ‘Special K’ to make a three-pronged assault on this year’s race with Kementari ($18) in gate seven second-up.

Carrying the 58.5kg top-weight is the Geoff Duryea-trained The Kosciuszko winner Front Page ($10) to be ridden from gate nine by Billy Egan.

The Will Savage-trained Savatoxl, last start winner with 60.5kg in the Group 3 DC McKay Stakes here on May 6, meanwhile looks a value runner forgotten by the punters at $21 to make it three on the trot.

Other standouts at longer prices chasing an upset include the Leon Macdonald & Andrew Gluyas-trained mare Another Award ($14) coming off a Group 1 Robert Sangster Stakes second at huge odds and last start Group 2 Tobin Bronze Stakes winning filly Royal Merchant ($19) for the Maher/Eustace stable.

The Goodwood 2023 is set to run as Morphettville Race 8 with full markets thanks to Ladbrokes.com.au available by clicking here.

2023 The Goodwood Final Field & Barrier Draw

Table Credit: Racing Australia.