2023 Canterbury Stakes preview & best bets | Saturday, March 4

The Canterbury Stakes is the first of two Group 1 races on Saturday afternoon at Randwick. The 1300m weight-for-age content has drawn 11 runners, with plenty of first-up gallopers to go along with some converging form-lines. This includes the New Zealand raider Imperatriz, who looks to be flying heading into this after destroying her rivals at Te Rapa on February 11 at Group 1 level.

Canterbury Stakes odds

It’s little surprise to see Imperatriz open as a $3 favourite with online bookmakers after three straight wins coming into this. Artorius ($4.60) has the services of Hong Kong premiership leader Zac Purton and shares the second line of betting with Golden Mile ($4.60), who will be looking to bounce off his second-placing behind Mariamia in the Expressway Stakes. It’s double-figure odds the rest of the field, with Cascadian coming here first-up and last-start winner Electric Girl both around the $11 mark.

Canterbury Stakes speedmap analysis

There doesn’t seem to be much of a genuine tempo for this year’s edition of the Canterbury Stakes, with no natural leader jumping off the page. We think the Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott-trained Converge may take up the running from the soft draw and find the inside running rail. Electric Girl got on the leaders’ backs in her Millie Fox Stakes success and should find a similar spot here. Lombardo (3) and Golden Mile (2) can be positive from their inside draws, taking top-four sits if they want it. Imperatriz and James McDonald will look to find a midfield position with cover throughout from barrier seven, while Artorius may track her everywhere she goes from gate eight. Kirwan’s Lane, Quantico and Argentia will all be dragged towards the back half of the field to avoid being cast wide without cover.

Canterbury Stakes form & tips

Imperatriz deserves to go on top with pure consistency alone. Her last three performances have resulted in strong wins, including the latest victory by 4.5 lengths in the Group 1 BCD Group Sprint at Te Rapa. She put away New Zealand’s best sprinters in convincing fashion, with Babylon Berlin and Levante both left chasing turning for home. The win came over 1400m and now drops back to the 1300m, but with the freshen from February 11 and the key booking of James McDonald, we aren’t concerned by the setup on Saturday afternoon. They’ll be looking for a midfield sit with cover, and provided she doesn’t get cast wide, her devastating turn-of-foot should prove to be too much for some horses lacking race fitness in comparison. The expected Soft track should be ideal for this daughter of I Am Invincible, who by all reports has travelled beautifully for Mark Walker and the Te Akau team.

Cascadian has come up over the odds at around $11 and he’s our saver bet in the race on Saturday. We know he’s not traditionally know for his sprinting prowess; however, with conditions looking suitable on the weekend, he looks the value danger in the race and we can’t have him going around without something on. He’s coming off a preparation where he found multiple victories – Hill Stakes and Craven Plate – before finishing things off with no luck in the Group 1 Northerly Stakes in Western Australia. He’s had a lovely tick-over trial at Hawkesbury leading into this first-up assignment, while he boasts a 9:2-1-3 record when fresh and 16:5-2-2 on Soft tracks. We think with an economical run for Brenton Avdulla, Cascadian may be just as likely to win as the fancied stablemate Golden Mile.

Golden Mile can only improve on what we saw in the Expressway Stakes on January 28 but has been well found at the price with online betting sites. He’s undoubtably a winning hope after chasing home Mariamia, and the extra 100m on Saturday should do this son of Astern wonders, as will the softer surface on offer at Randwick this time in. There’s a suggestion the three-year-old may just want a wet deck, and from what we’ve seen it’s hard to disagree, with his peak performance coming in the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas and Group 2 Callander-Presnell. His best is clearly good enough and he’s got to be included for exotic players.

Artorius is another galloper that’s been well found in the market and can definitely be competitive first-up after a 207-day spell from his European venture. He was placed in the July Cup and Platinum Jubilee but just seems to find one or two better at Group 1 level. That to go along with a tricky track pattern to overcome, it’s just too difficult to be backing him after a long campaign. We respect the booking of Zac Purton, and he’s another clear winning hope, but he looks to have plenty of obstacles to overcome.

2023 Canterbury Stakes selections & best bets

• 8

  IMPERATRIZ

• 1

  CASCADIAN

• 11

  GOLDEN MILE

• 2

  ARTORIUS

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