Fireburn’s Triple Crown hopes get extinguished by a boggy leader-biased Randwick track… and She’s Extreme

Just the one filly has completed the 2YO Triple Crown in the history of Australian racing (Burst in 1992), and that’s the way it’ll remain for at least another year, as Fireburn experienced the same pain that Sebring felt in 2008, when he won the Golden Slipper and the Sires, then ran 2nd by a short head to Samantha Miss in the Champagne Stakes.

Moving on from failed fillies, some of the highlights of the day included Warnie’s horse Sacred Oath finally winning it’s maiden on the Gold Coast, a month after SKW was stumped on 52, and the ride of the day was once again delivered by Nash Rawiller, who had absolutely no room to move on the rail aboard Kementari, but he created his own room by belting Big Parade out of the way with a ballsy (And reckless) piece of riding, and Special K duly responded and got off the canvas to win,.

And we’ll be seeing Nash riding like that again in May of 2057, when all of his suspensions expire.

So looking at the Crazy Picks, it was a superb winning day for the Boy From Bairnsdale, with Ayrton delivering the goods as the Pick of the Day against the expectations of many, and Tofane ran a huge 2nd in the All-Aged Stakes, which means Crazy Craig’s last 4 Value Picks have all run 2nd:

March 19 – I’m Thunderstruck runs 2nd in the All-Star Mile

There was no Value Pick on March 26

April 2 – Benaud runs 2nd in the ATC Derby

April 9 – Sheraz runs 2nd in the Sydney Cup

April 16 – Tofane runs 2nd in the All-Aged Stakes

But if you’re like me, you would’ve backed every single one for a place and made a handy profit every damn time.

So at the end of the day, the important part is we’ve seen 2 successful picks today, which means WE CAN SOUND THE LUCKY LIPS VICTORY TUNE:

Value Pick: Tofane in the G1 All-Aged Stakes at Randwick = 2nd ($3.70p)

Typical Godolphin – Their prize money machine in Colette retires, and a few days later they still pluck out a Group 1 winner:

I was fearful Tofane was going to drop off on the turn after being caught wide from the barrier for 99% of the race, but the champion mare, back at her beloved 1400m for the last time, had one last big run in her and used the track conditions to put what appeared to be a race-winning gap on the field at the furlong pole…

But it just wasn’t to be that fairytale finish that Mike Moroney had hoped for, as the Godolphin galloper Cascadian sprouted wings and spoiled the party just shy of the post, giving the Cummings family both Group 1 races on the day, given James’ father Anthony trained the Champagne Stakes winner She’s Extreme.

In fact, Crazy Craig and my good friend The Gabster at the Waterford TAB have something in common from today’s Randwick races, in that they were both nutted by a Godolphin horse just short of the line.

Obviously Crazy Craig picked Tofane in this race, while The Gabster had a $5:$10 bet on Count De Rupee in Race 6 (The Hall Mark Stakes), and the Count was the unfortunate bugger to get nutted by Kementari right on the post….

I wonder what would’ve happened if Count De Rupee had run 3rd, because I never told Gab it was a No Third Dividend race.

So that’s yet another superb run by the Value Pick, beating all bar the best performed horse in the race, and the All-Star Mile back on the 19th of March has proven itself to be the form race of the Autumn:

Zaaki (Winner) subsequently ran 2nd in the Queen Elizabeth, beaten only by a miraculous ride on Think It Over.

Mr Brightside (4th), I’m Thunderstruck (2nd) and Icebath (9th) completed the trifecta of the Doncaster Mile.

And now, Cascadian (5th) won this race and Tofane (8th) ran 2nd, and they put a gap on the field.

Pick of the Day: Ayrton in the G3 Victoria Handicap at Caulfield = WINNER ($2.80w/$1.38p)

I hope you like the irony of this performance…

Ayrton was steered to victory by a Kah.

So despite the knockers flying out of the woodwork due to the gelding being 1st Up after 7 months off due to a life-threatening spider bite, Ayrton the 1st Up specialist demonstrated that the little arachnid hadn’t sucked out any of his ability, and with Jamie Kah at the helm, the class animal of the field showed why he was just that, and proved his own trainer (Mick Kent Jnr) wrong in the process.

A performance like that from a Pick of the Day demonstrates why it pays to listen to an absolute lunatic like Crazy Craig, instead of noted form analysts like David Gately, Deane Lester and Brad Davidson….

Because Crazy Craig is CRAAAAAZY enough to be believable.

On another note, just touching back on the All-Star Mile, Streets of Avalon ran 3rd in that All-Star Mile, and now he’s run 2nd in this.

That bloody race is just form references galore.

Random Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Pick: Rock The Ring in Race 8 at Oakbank = 7th

Despite asking the world if they could smell what Rock The Ring is cooking, the favourite was picked up at the 800 metre pole by All Banter, who then drove him down Know Your Role Boulevard, hung a right at Jabroni Drive, and then checked his candy ass into the Smackdown Hotel, where he proceeded to lay a Smackdown on his candy ass.

When Barend Vorster was asked what he thought about the gelding’s performance, the horse proceeded to respond with this: