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One of the key support acts on Sydney’s Golden Rose Stakes Day features a small but smart line-up of mares, and the Races.com.au team have gone over the full Golden Pendant 2026 field with our expert preview, tips and betting update right here.
The Group 2 $400,000 Golden Pendant (1400m) field has been reduced to just seven starters after two early withdrawals from the line up including Apocalyptic.
That has seen the Golden Pendant odds on the favourite, Chris Waller‘s ultra-consistent Snitzel mare Lazzura, tighten in from $2.45 to $2.15 at Ladbrokes as she looks to return to winning form second-up.
After so many good runs at elite level, the bonny bay finally secured her maiden Group 1 success in the autumn with a brilliant performance to take out the Coolmore Classic (1500m) here in mid-March.
She went on to run a brave second at big odds behind her stablemate Beiwacht in Randwick’s Group 1 All Aged Stakes, the form of which was franked with that galloper posting an impressive three-length win fresh in Caulfield’s Memsie Stakes this season.
Lazzura meanwhile got her spring campaign underway on September 12 in the Group 2 Sheraco Stakes (1200m) over a sprint distance running a typically competitive third under a length off Savvy Hallie having closed hard to produce some speedy late sectionals.
Sticking at her pet track now, she’ll improve off that and looks every chance to add to her strong second-up record (5:3-0-1) with James McDonald aboard from barrier four.
The potential each way danger if Lazzura doesn’t fire on the second line of Golden Pendant betting this season is the Team Hawkes-trained Gangsta Granny at $4.60 out to go one better than her runner-up effort in the Sheraco with the stretch out in trip the only query.
Two other mares follow very closely at an equal quote of $5.50 with Modella coming off a tight win in Wyong’s Listed Mona Lisa Stakes after a big late charge who will be ridden by the airborne Zac Lloyd and the resuming Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott-trained Surfin’ Bird having her first Rosehill assignment on Saturday.
Verona Rose at $9.50 meanwhile rounds out the single figure hopes looking the standout value play in the race after Gary Portelli‘s Castelvecchio five-year-old ran out of her skin to cross third to Skyhook first-up here in the Group 2 Theo Marks Stakes.
The 2026 Golden Pendant is scheduled as Rosehill Race 7 at 3:25pm (AEST) on Saturday’s 10-race card.
2026 Golden Pendant Best Bets
Favourite: No. 1 Lazzura
| 1. Lazzura (4) J: James McDonald 58kg 212×3 T: Chris Waller | |||
| Second run back. First-up after five months sat on speed throughout when 3rd of 8 in the G2 Sheraco Stakes at this track on September 12 over 1200m, 0.6 len behind Savvy Hallie with 58kg at $2.90. Previously second-up favourite; won by a neck in the G1 Coolmore Classic at this track on March 14 over 1500m defeating Arctic Glamour with 58kg at $5. Coolmore winner who can finish over the top of this lot. | |||
