Horse Racing Betting Preview: Randwick, Caulfield Cards Are Highlight of Week

Australian racing returns to its peak season this Saturday with four Group 1 races to be held in Melbourne and Sydney.

And while Caulfield hosts three of those top-class races, the major attention will be on Randwick where champion mare Winx shoots for her 15th straight victory in the Chipping Norton Stakes.

The world's best turf racehorse returned to the track with an emphatic win in the Apollo Stakes earlier this month and is listed at $1.10 to take her unbeaten run even further against nine rivals, including Hartnell, who has ran second to her three times in the past six months. He is $8 to turn the tables on her this time around over 1,600 metres, according to AustralianGambling.com.au.

While the presence of Winx means that the Chipping Norton is not the best betting race, the remainder of the Randwick card is very strong.

The Group 2 Guy Walter Stakes features the return of top-quality mare First Seal ($4.60), who takes on the likes of Dixie Blossoms and Danish Twist, while the Surround Stakes for the fillies pits Gai Waterhouse's dual Group 1 winner Global Glamour ($2.60) against the likes of Foxplay ($5.50), Spright ($9) and the heavily spruiked Omei Sword ($4).

Victoria's richest two-year-old race, the Blue Diamond, will be run at Caulfield, with Catchy maintaining favorite status at $5.50 despite drawing a poor barrier.

The unbeaten filly is one of six runners from the David Hayes stable and will be ridden by Craig Williams, who had the choice of several rides in the race.

Catchy is aiming to become the sixth winner in the past seven years of the race to have not been beaten at any of her previous runs.

The Oakleigh Plate for the sprinters over 1,100 metres will also be run, with Extreme Choice, last year's Blue Diamond winner, among the leading chances.

The Futurity Stakes, a 1,400-metre weight-for-age Group 1 race, sees many of those who contested the Orr Stakes two weeks ago return. Black Heart Bart, the winner of that race, will be the favorite, with stablemates Palentino and Tosen Stardom among his chief rivals.