The world's richest race on turf, The Everest (AU$15 million), will be staged for the sixth time this Friday night at Sydney
's Royal Randwick. The wildly successful innovation, under a slot-holder format, has been brilliantly marketed and attracts a large crowd of significantly younger fans – the demographic that horse racing covets. This year's post position draw was conducted with a spectacular nighttime drone show on Sydney Harbor. The Everest is the seventh of a 10-race card that commences at 9.30 p.m. Eastern or 6.30 p.m. Pacific and FanDuel TV will be broadcasting live from Randwick racecourse.
The field for The Everest of 2022, at six furlongs (post position in parentheses):
#1 NATURE STRIP (12) 10-9 favorite. Just as Golden Pal targets a second Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, Nature Strip strives for a second The Everest. The American dynamo did not know which way the Aussie champion went at Royal Ascot, when their highly anticipated clash fizzled as soon as Golden Pal's gate opened. Nature Strip's triumph cemented his status as the world's top-ranked sprinter (and his rider, James McDonald, currently tops the global jockey rankings). The two-time Australian Horse of the Year won last year's The Everest as 7-2 favorite, and Nature Strip will become the shortest-priced horse in the race's history.
#2 EDUARDO (9) 8-1. Nine years old but lightly raced and marvelous. Famous sparring partner of Nature Strip, with a 4-7 head-to-head record. Finished third last year.
#3 LOST AND RUNNING (7) 6-1. Finished fourth in 2021 and enters this renewal in better form. Last-start G2 winner with a nice middle gate.
#4 MASKED CRUSADER (10) 12-1. Eye-catching third behind Lost And Running most recently. Risky beginner who possesses a furious late kick. Bungled the break in last year's The Everest, before storming home for a close second. Dangerous.
#5 MAZU (11) 16-1. Split #3&4 in G2 prep. 4-year-old is a G1 winner and 7-for-13 lifetime. Stable won the first two runnings of The Everest with Redzel.
#6 PRIVATE EYE (3) 13-1. Stablemate to Eduardo who owns a G1 win at Randwick. Strong G3 win off a layoff last start.
#7 OVERPASS (6) 40-1. Plagued all year by very wet tracks. Longshot exotics hope if the going is “soft” rather than “heavy.”
#8 INGRATIATING (4) 50-1 Godolphin's Australian trainer, James Cummings, believes this 4-year-old is rediscovering the form that saw him fill minor placings in Australia's most prestigious six-furlong 2-year-old races, the Golden Slipper and Blue Diamond: “We are on the edge of being rewarded. He is ready to run the race of his life.”
#9 JOYFUL FORTUNE (1) 66-1. Former Hong Kong sprinter who won his Australian debut (non-stakes race) off a 14-month layoff. 6-year-old with only eight lifetime starts. Hard to endorse.
#10 SHADES OF ROSE (8) 50-1. Stablemate of Overpass. Promising mare who stretched her career record to 7-for-9 with a G2 win versus her own sex. 15 fillies and mares have contested The Everest, with none faring better than fifth.
#11 JACQUINOT (2) 9-1. Victorious last start in the G1 Golden Rose, thus follows the same path that led to Yes Yes Yes becoming The Everest's lone 3-year-old winner (2019).
#12 GIGA KICK (5) 20-1. Another 3-year-old, unbeaten in four career starts but who lacks seasoning and has not raced in the Sydney direction (clockwise). Exciting prospect, but this is a huge ask.
There are four Also Eligibles with limited appeal, who will likely contest the preceding race, the Sydney Stakes (G3). Other supporting stakes include the Silver Eagle and Angst Stakes, transferred from last weekend's card that was rained out halfway through. FanDuel TV's Adam McGrath will be trackside with Sky Racing World's Jason Witham for a live, on-site broadcast.
The Randwick card (AUS-B) will be broadcast live on FanDuel TV this Friday night (First Post: 9.30 p.m. ET / 6.30 p.m. PT) alongside cards from Newcastle (AUS-A), Eagle Farm (AUS-C), and Gold Coast (AUS-D). All races will be live-streamed in HD on the new Sky Racing World App, skyracingworld.com and major ADW platforms such as TVG, TwinSpires, Xpressbet, NYRABets, WatchandWager, HPIbet, and AmWager. Wagering is also available via these ADW platforms. Fans can get free access to live-streaming, past performances and expert picks on all races at skyracingworld.com.
About Michael Wrona
A native of Brisbane, Australia, Michael Wrona has called races in six countries. Michael's vast U.S. experience includes; race calling at Los Alamitos, Hollywood Park, Arlington and Santa Anita, calling the 2000 Preakness on a national radio network and the 2016 Breeders' Cup on the International simulcast network. Michael also performed a race call voiceover for a Seinfeld episode called The Subway.
The post Nature Strip Strives For A Second Victory In The Everest appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
