Pakenham hosts its regular summer Thursday-night meeting with eight races ahead of us.
The tips and selections you have to be with are ready to fire after a big day at Sandown yesterday with the best of the card saluting.
pakenham race 1
#5 phareal
Phareal was a better debut run than what a first glance might assume.
The three-year-old gelding was first-up at 1400 metres off some neat jump outs to get him ready and might just have felt the pinch of a heavy track without race fitness to guide him.
He will have learnt a lot from that run and seems to have plenty of upside to his rating in a race that rated highly for a maiden on heavy ground.
He was finishing off his race look a horse that was looking for further distance after doing his best work through the finish line.
Love when this stable applies the blinkers for the first time because you just know it signals massive intent to win.
Getting back onto dry going should also see him elevate his last-start performance.
Michael Dee remains aboard and will give this horse every conceivable chance from a simple barrier.
Suggested Bet: Phareal each-way at $5.5 the win and $2.05 the place.
Suggested Exotic: Boxed Trifecta – 3, 4, 5, 6
Pakenham race 2
#5 shadowmaker
One of the more intriguing runners on the program is Shadowmaker.
He made his debut back when he was a two-year-old in July of 2021 and was immediately spelled after ninth of 11 on a bog-heavy track at Mornington.
This three-year-old has since been gelded and there is no public footage of him jumping out anywhere.
We have to be very wary of these connections.
The Brett Prebble and Caroline Jennings combination is one of the more deadly in racing having had three winners from their last seven starts together.
They would not want to waste having drawn barrier two and Prebble being booked first-up is a sign this horse has something to give.
A jockey like Prebble is not going to riding if the horse is no hope.
Suggested Bet: Shadowmaker each-way at $26 the win and $5 the place.
Suggested Exotic: Quinella 4 & 5
pakenham race 3
#7 set the sails
Set The Sails is ready to sail through for a maiden victory when he races over 1400 metres at Pakenham.
He comes out of a touted maiden race at this track over the sprinting distance of 1200 metres last start and the form out of that race has been franked already with Chain coming out and winning at Sandown.
The Mick Price & Michael Kent Jnr. stable has elected to boot off Patrick Moloney in favour of star jockey Damian Lane, which adds to our confidence here.
This horse started a $5 elect when resuming after a base-building first campaign and was holding his spot to the nicely in a fast-run race.
Any elevation on what he did a fortnight ago will see him super hard to beat.
Should get the run of the race from barrier five as well and conserve all his petrol for a big sprint in the home straight.
Making him the best of the night.
Suggested Bet: Set The Sails win at $2.60
pakenham race 6
#2 indented head
Very surprised not to see Indented Head as the favourite in this race.
She is the only horse who brings genuine Saturday form into the event and she takes a big step down in grade here coming back from BM-70 level to a BM-64.
Only has to go up 1.5kgs from that last effort at Moonee Valley where she ran second behind Riyouki.
The form out of the race has stacked up as well with Throntari, who ran fourth at Moonee Valley behind Indented Head, running a nose behind the very smart Minouche.
Another factor to consider is how well the Philip Stokes stable goes at its home track of Pakenham.
This filly sets up perfectly to make it career win number two and she can get her rating up to progress to bigger city races.
Suggested Bet: Indented Head win at $3.80
Suggested Exotic: Boxed Trifecta – 1, 2, 6
