Jack Milner
Firealley is one of those horses who rarely runs a bad race. The five-year-old gelding has raced 31 times for five wins and 13 places.
If one peruses the form of the son of Flower Alley one will acknowledge that many of those unplaced efforts were in Graded company.
On Wednesday at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth he lines up in Race 7, the Winter Mile over 1600m, and clearly has the ability to win a race of this nature.
While he is not the best-weighted competitor – that role goes to Linebacker – the Candice Bass-Robinson-trained runner is well in with the other highly rated runners in the line-up.
On his last run Firealley has to be a contender for this event. That was in a Cape A Stakes over 1400m at this course where he was only caught late by favourite Royal Aussie, going down just 0.30 lengths.
Behind him on that occasion were reopposing Speed Machine, Linebacker and My Bestie. He will meet all but My Bestie on identical terms and My Bestie does not have enough of a weight turnround to reverse the placings.
Aldo Domeyer takes the ride on Firealley.
The main threat could come from stable companion Sugar Mountain who has a competitive weight of 54kg. He does take a jump in class but is in top form and should run well.
Linebacker has not triumphed since the Grade 1 Daily News 2000 in 2021 which he won off a merit rating of 124. Despite not having won in 767 days, having had 12 runs since, his rating has only dropped to 117, which based on recent form might still be over-inflated.
If Vaughan Marshall can rekindle some of that old spark, however, the five-year-old might still be good enough to win this race.
Craig Zackey takes the ride.
Jack Milner’s selections
Race 1: 12 Three Coins, 13 Pineapplemintgreen, 3Triptothewoods, 1 Candy Town
Race 2: 10 Below Deck, 5 Montreal, 2 Unconquerable Lady, 8 Lip Sync
Race 3: 8 Spring Palace, 1 Fujisan, 7 Hluhluwe, 2 My Golly Molly
Race 4: 8 Green Knight, 10 Ponte Vecchio, 4 Cabaret, 6 Boogiefied
Race 5: 5 Snow Pilot, 7 Lady Majorca, 10 No Apologies, 4 Etoilefillante
Race 6: 1 Analytic, 3 Sunshine Day, 6 Epikleros, 2 Woman's World
Race 7: 8 Firealley, 4 Sugar Mountain, 3 Linebacker, 2 Gainsford
Race 8: 6 Metar, 5 Cloud Chaser, 3 My Flower Fate, 4 Symphony Of Light
Race 9: 3 Sudden Song, 5 Royal Watch, 2 Night Ruler, 7 Mucho Dinero
BEST BET
Race 5 No 5 Snow Pilot
VALUE BET
Race 9 No 3 Sudden Song
BEST SWINGER
Race 5 5x7
BIPOT
R216
Leg 1: 2, 5, 10
Leg 2: 1, 2, 7, 8
Leg 3: 1, 8, 10
Leg 4: 5
Leg 5: 1, 3, 6
Leg 6: 3, 4, 8
PLACE ACCUMULATOR
R162
Leg 1: 1, 7, 8
Leg 2: 1, 8, 10
Leg 3: 5
Leg 4: 1
Leg 5: 4, 8
Leg 6: 3, 5, 6
Leg 7: 2, 3, 5
PICK 6
R1800
Leg 1: 1, 4, 6, 8, 10
Leg 2: 4
Leg 3: 1, 3, 6
Leg 4: 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10
Leg 5: 3, 4, 5, 6
Leg 6: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7
JACKPOT 1
R72
Leg 1: 4
Leg 2: 1, 3, 6
Leg 3: 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10
Leg 4: 3, 4, 5, 6
JACKPOT 2
R360
Leg 1: 1, 3, 6
Leg 2: 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10
Leg 3: 3, 4, 5, 6
Leg 4: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7