Australian Oaks

This Saturday as part of the elite line-up of races held at Randwick on Doncaster Mile Day, 12 brilliant three-year-old fillies will take to the track in the $350,000 Group 1 AJC Australian Oaks (2400m).

The pre-race favourite for the 2010 Patinack Farm AJC Oaks is classy Shamardal filly Faint Perfume, trained by the legendary Bart Cummings.

Having drawn out wide in barrier 11 seems to have done no harm to Faint Perfume’s popularity with the punters as the last-start Group 1 Storm Queen Stakes (2000m) winner aims for her sixth career victory.

A victory on Saturday would make Faint Perfume a dual Oaks winner as she took out the VRC Oaks (2500m) last spring.

Faint Perfume’s biggest rival in the AJC Oaks will be the Tony Vasil-trained daughter of Encosta De Lago, Valdemoro. The slightly less experienced filly has shown exceptional skill over her eight-race career, and ran a gallant second to Faint Perfume in the Storm Queen on April 4.

Valdemoro too has drawn poorly for Saturday and is the only horse to start on the outside of Faint Perfume in barrier 12.

Third placegetter in the Storm Queen Stakes, Absolute Faith, is also backing up with a run in the Australian Oaks on Saturday and will jump from gate nine with Brad Rawiller aboard.

Other top chances in the 2010 AJC Australian Oaks include last start winner of the Group 3 Adrian Knox Stakes (2000m) Speedy Natalie, the improving Peter Moody-trained filly having fared will with barrier two, stablemate to Speedy Natalie Ocean Dream in barrier three, and Gai Waterhouse’s consistent Johannesburg filly Once Were Wild also drawn well in barrier four

The 2010 Patinack Farm AJC Oaks is due to jump at 2:55pm as the fifth race on a bumper eight-race programme, headlined by the $1.5 million Group 1 Doncaster Mile (1600m). And a third Group 1 event will take place at Randwick on Saturday, the $300,000 The James Boag Galaxy (1100m).

2010 Patinack Farm AJC Australian Oaks Final Field & Barriers: