Overview
Imperial Award has raced three times and won three times, and tonight Laurie asks for a fourth from barrier 12 in a Benchmark 70 sprint. That is the question hanging over the back end of the Cranbourne card, and it is a better one than it first looks. Luke Cartwright takes the ride, and Cartwright has not won from 39 rides at this track. Laurie, on the other hand, has won with 10 of 26 runners here.
The rest of the night is a proper Friday twilight card: eight races on a Good surface, the first at 6:15PM and the last at 9:45PM, nearly all of them Benchmark 70 to 78 handicaps plus the Gold Star over 1400m. These Cranbourne racing tips run race by race, with a firm opinion in each one, a short list of the stables and riders that matter at this track, and the four bets we would actually have at the bottom. Cashout and Karren are the two that look hardest to beat.
Cranbourne, the setup
A Good track, a mix of sprints and middle distances, and a rail position that will decide plenty from the wide gates. Only three of tonight’s runners have three or more starts at Cranbourne, so the horse table is short. The jockey and trainer numbers carry more weight.
Horses with real course form
| Horse | Runs | Wins | Places | Win% | Place% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jewel Bay | 4 | 2 | 3 | 50.00 | 75.00 |
| Street Conqueror | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0.00 | 66.67 |
| Stage ‘N’ Screen | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0.00 | 66.67 |
Jockeys, sorted by place rate
| Jockey | Runs | Wins | Places | Win% | Place% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caitlin Hollowood | 17 | 3 | 11 | 17.65 | 64.71 |
| Thomas Stockdale | 31 | 6 | 18 | 19.35 | 58.06 |
| Lachlan Neindorf | 42 | 10 | 23 | 23.81 | 54.76 |
| Ethan Brown | 19 | 7 | 10 | 36.84 | 52.63 |
| M J Dee | 20 | 1 | 10 | 5.00 | 50.00 |
| Nadia Daniels | 20 | 4 | 9 | 20.00 | 45.00 |
| Patrick Moloney | 21 | 6 | 9 | 28.57 | 42.86 |
| J Mott | 54 | 10 | 23 | 18.52 | 42.59 |
Trainers, sorted by place rate
| Trainer | Runs | Wins | Places | Win% | Place% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lloyd Kennewell | 10 | 4 | 9 | 40.00 | 90.00 |
| C W Mcdonald | 16 | 9 | 13 | 56.25 | 81.25 |
| G M Begg | 20 | 6 | 13 | 30.00 | 65.00 |
| C J Waller | 8 | 4 | 5 | 50.00 | 62.50 |
| C Maher | 50 | 8 | 29 | 16.00 | 58.00 |
| A & S Freedman | 23 | 6 | 13 | 26.09 | 56.52 |
| M M Laurie | 26 | 10 | 14 | 38.46 | 53.85 |
| Julius Sandhu | 42 | 10 | 21 | 23.81 | 50.00 |
Two things jump out. Maher has six runners on the card and places with more than half of the stable’s Cranbourne runners, so those horses are worth respecting even when they are not the pick. And Lloyd Kennewell has sent ten runners to Cranbourne for nine placings. He has one tonight.
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Cranbourne race by race
Race 1: The Valley @ Southside Cranbourne (Bm70), 6:15PM, 1000m
Angels Fury is the one. The Maher three-year-old comes in with form of 9, 1, 1, two wins on the bounce, and gets Ethan Brown, who has won on seven of 19 rides at Cranbourne. Brown and Maher have been a productive pairing everywhere: 24 wins from 90 rides together since the start of 2025, and a win and another placing from their two goes here.
Angels Fury does carry top weight of 59kg and has not raced in the last 90 days, so this is a first-up assignment over the shortest trip of the night. That is the risk. Senza Nome is the danger after winning its only start in that 90-day window, and Super Wonder has a win among three placings from four recent runs and jumps from barrier 1, which makes it the safest place option in a field of six. Win bet on Angels Fury.
Race 2: Chef’s Hat (Bm70), 6:45PM, 2025m
Can anyone in this field actually win? Killenaule has placed in all five of its runs in the last three months without getting a head in front once, and that sums up a staying handicap full of honest types. Two have already come out (Nothingelsematters and Just Dance), which leaves 11.
Sarapo is the one with an edge. Waller has won with four of eight runners at Cranbourne, Sarapo has a win and a second from three runs in the last 90 days, and Shinn gets in at 55.5kg from barrier 7. Pariah Pearl has won one of two starts here and is the danger from barrier 2, while Covert Thinking has placed in three of four recent runs for the Maher yard.
Sarapo to win, and Killenaule each way is the obvious place play for anyone who wants a saver. The record says Killenaule will be close; it also says there is usually one too good.
Race 3: Mcmahon’s Dairy (Bm70), 7:15PM, 1400m
Lloyd Kennewell places with nine of every ten runners sent to Cranbourne, and Karren is tonight’s runner. That is the stable move behind the best bet of the early part of the card.
Karren‘s form reads 1, 2, 1, with a win and a second from two runs in the last 90 days. Ethan Brown rides again from barrier 6, and 59kg is fair for a horse on the way up. Escarpa is the danger: a winner at one of two starts here, placed twice from three recent runs, and ridden by Stackhouse, but barrier 11 makes life harder. Carriedo placed at its only Cranbourne start and could run into a place for Begg.
Win bet on Karren, the banker for multis.
Race 4: Ladbrokes Tote Win +10% In October (Bm74), 7:45PM, 1400m
Cashout has done nothing wrong. Three runs in the last three months for two wins and a second, a form line that finishes 1, 2, 1, and barrier 2 under Shinn at 58kg. He is the clearest form horse on the whole card and the most likely winner tonight.
The one to worry about is Mount Bona. The form ends with a first-up win after a spell, Jordan Childs has won on six of 23 rides here, and Begg turns 13 of 20 Cranbourne runners into placegetters. If Mount Bona has trained on from that win, it is the horse that can make Cashout work. Jewel Bay is the course horse with two wins from four starts here, but has not placed in three runs in the last 90 days. Respect the track record, not the recent form.
Cashout to win, with a saver on Mount Bona.
Race 5: Mittys Vobis Gold Star, 8:15PM, 1400m
Ten Commandments has banked more than $165,000 in the last 90 days, and the reason is simple: two wins and another placing from five runs. Thomas Stockdale rides for Maher from barrier 2, and Stockdale places on 18 of 31 rides at this track.
Run Harry Run is the class danger after a win and another placing from four recent starts worth more than $120,000, from a nice gate in 4 for the Hayes stable. Racey Casey is honest, with three top-three finishes from five recent runs, but only one of them a win. Miss Playlounge is worth a mention as the only runner here for Mcdonald, who has won with nine of 16 Cranbourne runners.
Ten Commandments to win. This leg opens the quaddie, and that is the one to build around.
Race 6: Ladbrokes 55 Second Challenge (Bm78), 8:45PM, 955m
Headbanger and Magnabelle Royale have both raced at Cranbourne twice and won twice. That is where this race starts and ends, and the barriers split them.
Headbanger jumps from 3 under Shinn for Begg, which puts Headbanger on or near the speed in a dash over 955m. Magnabelle Royale has to come from 12 with Patrick Moloney, who has won on six of 21 rides here, and Laurie’s numbers at this track are strong. Over a trip this short, the wide gate is a real cost.
Dragon Scroll is the other one in form, finishing 1, 1, 4 recently for Clayton Douglas, and drawn to sit handy from 7. Back Headbanger to win, and box it with Magnabelle Royale in the exacta.
Race 7: Ladbrokes Cox Plate @ Flemington (Bm70), 9:15PM, 1200m
Here is the question of the night. Imperial Award is three from three and has won both runs in the last 90 days, so there is no argument about ability against these. The argument is the setup: barrier 12 in a field of 12 runners, and a rider in Luke Cartwright who is still looking for a first Cranbourne winner from 39 attempts.
Laurie is the counterweight. Ten wins from 26 runners at Cranbourne is the best strike rate of any trainer with real volume on tonight’s card, and an unbeaten horse does not need a perfect run to keep winning. The two in the way are Esmahli, placed in both recent runs for the Hayes stable from barrier 3, and Warrior Within, a winner at one of two starts here for Julius Sandhu but unplaced at the only run in the last three months. Shaime is a non-runner.
Imperial Award to win, with a saver on Esmahli. If Cartwright finds cover from the wide draw, the record should stay intact.
Race 8: More From Tote With Ladbrokes (Bm78), 9:45PM, 1600m
The last is the hardest race on the card to have a firm view on. Lim’s Bighorn is the lean: a winner at one of two starts at Cranbourne, with a win from three runs in the last 90 days, and in light with 55.5kg for Patrick Johnston from barrier 7.
Oceana Dream is the one most likely to beat it, with a third, third and third in the last three after a first-up win, and draws the rail. Stage ‘N’ Screen has placed twice from three starts here and suits anyone wanting a place. Small win bet on Lim’s Bighorn, or treat it as a watch race.
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Where the money goes
NAP: Cashout (Race 4, 7:45PM). Two wins and a second from the last three, barrier 2 and Shinn in the saddle. Nothing else on the night has form this tidy.
Value: Sarapo (Race 2, 6:45PM). A Waller four-year-old with a light weight in a staying race full of horses who keep running second. The market tends to overlook that kind of runner early in the night.
Banker: Karren (Race 3, 7:15PM). Two runs this campaign for a win and a second, and a trainer who places with almost everything it sends to this track.
Each-way: Killenaule (Race 2, 6:45PM). Five placings from five recent runs. Killenaule rarely misses the frame.
Course angle: Back the Laurie and Kennewell runners at Cranbourne. Between them they have 36 runners here for 14 wins and 23 placings, and tonight they have Imperial Award, Magnabelle Royale and Karren.
If Imperial Award wins from 12 tonight, the Cranbourne racing tips for the next start will be written around how far this horse can go, not whether it can win.
Cranbourne racing FAQ
What time does racing start at Cranbourne today?
Race 1, the Benchmark 70 over 1000m, jumps at 6:15PM AEDT. The last, a Benchmark 78 over 1600m, is at 9:45PM.
Who are the top trainers and jockeys at Cranbourne?
Among tonight’s trainers, Laurie has won with 10 of 26 Cranbourne runners and Lloyd Kennewell has placed with nine of ten. In the saddle, Ethan Brown has won seven of 19 rides here and Lachlan Neindorf has 10 wins from 42.
What are the best bets at Cranbourne today?
Cashout in Race 4 is the best bet after two wins and a second from the last three. Karren in Race 3 is the banker, and Ten Commandments in Race 5 is the one to anchor the quaddie on.
Where can I find the best odds for Cranbourne races?
Each race heading above links to the full racecard, which shows the best available price from our partner bookmakers once markets open. Compare them in the bookmaker list above before you bet.