Based on a series of plausible events in a regional Victorian town

Who’d have thought it.

An Australian-bred horse that could actually stay.

Certainly not myself or our resident lunatic, that’s for sure… Half Yours can’t be a thoroughbred, he must be a unicorn.

Anyway, that was Cup Day, and now we have the last day of the Melbourne Cup Carnival, aka Stakes Day, officially known as CHAMPIONS DAY with the 3 Group 1 races; The Champions Sprint (The Darley Sprint Classic), featuring Tentyris going for a historic Coolmore Stud Stakes/Darley Classic double that hasn’t been done since the almighty 3YO Vain in 1969, the Champions Mile (The old Cantala Stakes) which used to be the feature race of the last Saturday of the Cup Carnival, and the Champions Stakes, which is the time-honoured Mackinnon Stakes that Bart Cummings used as a lead-up race to the Melbourne Cup so perfectly for decades…

Alas, we haven’t had that great 2000m race on Derby Day for 10 damn years, just so the VRC can try and entice those Cox Plate runners into one last Spring run a fortnight later, and to that effect they got the record-setting 2-time Cox Plate winner Via Sistina back for another run against a field of plodders, and if she does win she’d be the first mare since Tranquil Star in 1944-45 to repeat in the Mackinnon Stakes – Since then, you’ve had Comic Court (1949 & 1950), Rising Fast (1954 & 1955), Belmura Lad (1980 & 1981) and Zaaki (2021 & 2022) go back to back.

Other than that, Rosehill has the Hot Danish Stakes, the Five Diamonds and the Golden Gift, and Ascot has the feature Group 2 Lee Steere Stakes, the primary lead-up race to the Railway Stakes in a fortnight, which does seem ironic because it used to be on the same day as the Railway Stakes… which itself used to be on the same day as the Perth Cup.

So it’s on to Crazy Craig, and thank goodness he found Panova to kick off Derby Day last week, because it enabled him to completely forget about Valiant King’s run in the Melbourne Cup…. a run so bad that Jye McNeil got rubbed out for it!

Also I think he did pick Pride Of Jenni to win the Empire Rose… well that’s always a chance when she’s the modern day Vo Rogue!

The Hunters & Collectors Pick: Sea What I See (No.6, Barrier 10) E/W in Race 4 at Flemington (MR4), 2:30pm AEDT

2000m Group 2 Mares TAB Matriach Stakes

Trainer: Danny O’Brien, Jockey: Craig Williams, 55kg

Hello all it’s Craaaazy Craig TBFB, Scratchie King of Bairnsdale, and once again we’re using the power of MELBOURNE CUP WEEK to provide loose change for the mothers with prams, and scratchies for the down on their luck folk of Bairnsdale, and a big thanks to all the trainers who primed their nags for the great week… PANOVA, what a great run!

Anyway, tomorrow we’ll see a rematch of the Tesio Stakes from Cox Plate Day at the Valley, when dominant favourite She’s A Hustler won the race, but this time around we’ve got the different prospect of the 2000m of Flemington with the bloody long straight, and in addition Sea What I See gets a 6kg weight swing in her favour (58 down 55 and She’s A Hustler goes from 54 to 57), so I think we’ll be belting out Hunters And Collectors at Flemington tomorrow afternoon…

DO YOU SEA WHAT I SEE?

DO YA SEA WHAT I SEE!

Crazy Crappy Group 1 Picks

VRC Champions Sprint: Tentyris (No.10) in open grade to complete one of the best sprinting doubles in Melbourne Cup week in recorded history

VRC Champions Mile: May as well Take Pride of Jenni (No.7, Barrier 2) to try and pull off another Vo Rogue win

VRC Champions Stakes: Via Sistina (No.10)…. it could very well be the last time she ever races at Flemington

Enjoy your Saturday folks, STAY DRY, stay safe, stay negative, KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE ROAD, and remember, I’m Crazy Craig, and that’s why they call me Craaaaaazy Craig!