Overview
Bee Admired has been to Pakenham twice, won once and placed both times, and comes into Friday night’s Benchmark 62 off a win with only 57.5kg to carry. That race at 7:45PM is the hinge of the night, and it opens the quaddie.
Around it sits an eight-race card that starts with four maidens and finishes with four Benchmark 62 handicaps, all listed on a soft surface. The early races are thin on hard evidence, so the reads there lean on connections: the Luke Nolen and Peter Moody partnership has a strong record at this track, Ciaron Maher‘s runners place more than half the time here, and Charlotte Littlefield wins with close to three in ten. The back half of the card is where the track form lives, with Blue Bandit, Little Richo and Handsome Missile all bringing real course numbers. If you want Pakenham racing tips that tell you where the money should go and where to keep it in your pocket, this card gives you both kinds of race. No bookmaker prices were up when this was written, so check the racecard links for the live market before you bet.
Pakenham: the setup tonight
Friday night under lights, eight races from 5:45PM to 9:15PM, distances from 1094m up to 1750m and a soft rating on the card. The maidens are full of debut and second-up types, so treat those races with some caution. The handicaps are a different story, with several horses that have raced here three or more times.
Horse course form
| Horse | Runs | Wins | Places | Win% | Place% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Bandit | 4 | 2 | 3 | 50.0 | 75.0 |
| Garnacho | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0.0 | 75.0 |
| Handsome Missile | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0.0 | 75.0 |
| Little Richo | 3 | 1 | 2 | 33.3 | 66.7 |
| Mafee | 5 | 1 | 3 | 20.0 | 60.0 |
| Dundonald | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0.0 | 60.0 |
| Shidan | 4 | 1 | 2 | 25.0 | 50.0 |
| Empressive Enuff | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 50.0 |
| Jewel Bay | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 33.3 |
Jockeys at Pakenham (5+ rides)
| Jockey | Runs | Wins | Places | Win% | Place% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B Shinn | 10 | 3 | 8 | 30.0 | 80.0 |
| Jabez Johnstone | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20.0 | 80.0 |
| Damian Lane | 13 | 4 | 10 | 30.8 | 76.9 |
| Jackson Radley | 42 | 8 | 20 | 19.0 | 47.6 |
| Ben Allen | 71 | 10 | 33 | 14.1 | 46.5 |
| L Nolen | 64 | 12 | 29 | 18.8 | 45.3 |
| Jye Mcneil | 114 | 16 | 51 | 14.0 | 44.7 |
| Lachlan Neindorf | 117 | 20 | 50 | 17.1 | 42.7 |
Trainers at Pakenham (20+ runners)
| Trainer | Runs | Wins | Places | Win% | Place% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C Maher | 66 | 14 | 36 | 21.2 | 54.6 |
| Reece Goodwin | 72 | 10 | 37 | 13.9 | 51.4 |
| P G Moody & Katherine Coleman | 86 | 20 | 43 | 23.3 | 50.0 |
| M Price & M Kent Jnr | 96 | 19 | 47 | 19.8 | 49.0 |
| Peter Gelagotis | 36 | 5 | 17 | 13.9 | 47.2 |
| Andrea Leek | 20 | 3 | 9 | 15.0 | 45.0 |
| M M Laurie | 25 | 4 | 11 | 16.0 | 44.0 |
| Charlotte Littlefield | 27 | 8 | 11 | 29.6 | 40.7 |
One number worth carrying through the night: E & D Browne have sent 39 runners to Pakenham without a winner, though nine of them have placed. They have five runners tonight.
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Pakenham race by race
Race 1: The Valley @ Southside Pakenham Mdn Plate, 5:45PM, 1750m
Endemic is the one. The three-year-old has run third in both starts, drops to 55kg against the older horses, and gets Luke Nolen for P G Moody & Katherine Coleman. That combination has 9 wins and 15 placings from 28 rides together at Pakenham, which is the strongest partnership number on the whole card. Barrier 4 should let Nolen find a spot without using the horse up early, and the 1750m looks a sensible step for a horse that has been finding the line.
Cowboykickedfive is the obvious danger and the obvious frustration. Four placings from six runs in the last three months, placed in both visits here, and still no win. Expect to see that one in the finish again. Viking Kid ran third on debut at this track and has B Shinn aboard, which matters given Shinn’s record for M Price & M Kent Jnr here: six rides, two wins, and every one of them placed.
Win bet on Endemic.
Race 2: Ladbrokes Tote Win +10% In October Mdn Plate, 6:15PM, 1531m
Hard to have a confident view. Four of the thirteen have never raced, and the ones that have are mostly showing a fourth or fifth as their best recent effort. Plucky Enuff ran fourth on debut and gets Patrick Moloney for R D Griffiths, a stable that has won with 8 of its 41 runners at Pakenham. If forced, that is the pick.
Fierce Ruby has a second in the recent form, so there is some evidence of getting into a finish. Call Me Later is another to watch from the Moody stable after a fifth first time out.
Watch race, no bet. Use it to see how the soft ground is playing.
Race 3: Mittys Mdn Plate, 6:45PM, 1094m
Wyandra has done everything but win, and the profile says it is close. Two Pakenham starts, two placings, a second at the only run in the last 90 days, and a string of seconds and thirds through the form. Nolen rides again for the Moody and Coleman stable, and the inside half of the draw at barrier 6 gives the rider options over the 1094m.
The danger is Celestial Blue, second on debut for Phillip & Tommy Stokes with Lachlan Neindorf, who has won 20 races here and has more rides at the track than anyone else in tonight’s jockey ranks. A second-up improver at three is exactly the type that beats a frustrating older maiden.
Win bet on Wyandra, and into the multis.
Race 4: Chef’s Hat Mdn Plate, 7:15PM, 1312m
The market problem here is Lomu. Lomu has run 2, 3 and 2 at the last three starts, placed on the only visit to Pakenham, and on form is the one to beat. The hesitation is the stable. E & D Browne are still looking for their first Pakenham winner after 39 tries, and Lomu has drifted into the habit of finding one better. B Rawiller rides from barrier 10.
Voltrix is the threat. Voltrix ran second first up for Ben, Will & JD Hayes and M J Dee rides, and a debut second often turns into a win next time. Iron Eagle, also from the Browne stable, ran third two starts back and is the other one with a placing to show.
Lomu each-way. The place part of the bet does the heavy lifting on that record.
Race 5: Congratulations Cosmic Crusader (Bm62), 7:45PM, 1312m
This is the race of the night, and it is the one where a light weight and proven track form line up together. Bee Admired won last start, has won one of two Pakenham visits and placed in the other, and has placed in both runs over the past three months. The 57.5kg is the lowest weight in the race, from barrier 4, against a field where most carry 58.5kg or more.
The connections help. Charlotte Littlefield wins with almost three in ten Pakenham runners, eight from 27, which is the best strike rate of any trainer with real volume at this track tonight. V Le Boeuf has a modest record here, two wins from 30 rides, but this horse does not need anything special from the saddle. A clean run from a good draw should be enough.
The race is not short of in-form horses, which is why it is worth the time. In A Tizzy won the only run in the last 90 days and gets B Shinn for M Price & M Kent Jnr, the partnership that has placed every time here. Befuddle also won last start for J D Sadler, and Lightwatch won last time and jumps from barrier 1. Kippis won two starts back before a seventh for Ciaron Maher. Efferato is first up from a spell with topweight.
If the wide-drawn runners push forward, a horse drawn inside them with the least weight can sit and wait. In A Tizzy is the one with the profile to beat Bee Admired.
Win bet on Bee Admired, with a saver exacta that has In A Tizzy in second.
Race 6: Kia Ora Stud (Bm62), 8:15PM, 1094m
Nordic Strike versus Watten Assett, consistency against track experience. Nordic Strike has placed in all three runs over the past 90 days for Ciaron Maher, and Jabez Johnstone rides. That pair has 43 wins from 196 rides together overall, a stable booking that says they want this. The catch is barrier 12 and 60kg over a sprint.
Watten Assett has been to Pakenham twice, won once and placed both times, and has a win and three placings from four runs in recent months. J Mott, who has 18 wins here, rides from barrier 11, so both horses have the same wide-gate problem.
Keep an eye on Sharing Moments for one reason: Damian Lane. He has ridden 13 times at Pakenham for four wins and ten placings, and a rider of that standard turning up at a Friday night provincial meeting is worth noting. The horse is coming off a seventh, so it is a rider-led chance rather than a form one. Mafee has the most course runs in the race,, a win and three placings from five here.
Nordic Strike to win, small stakes given the draw.
Race 7: Ranvet (Bm62), 8:45PM, 1750m
Does a track record that keeps finishing second beat one that knows how to win here? Little Richo won last start and has a win and two placings from three runs at Pakenham. Damien Thornton‘s record at the track is light, two wins from 44, and that may keep the price fair. From barrier 2 at 59.5kg, Little Richo can hold a spot on the fence and get first crack at the straight.
Handsome Missile won last start too and has placed in three of four runs here without winning one. A win and three placings from four runs over the past 90 days shows a horse in good order. Ben Allen rides for Reece Goodwin, whose runners place more than half the time at this track.
Galant Knight is the unexposed one, a winner last start for the Hayes stable with only three runs in the form. Garnacho has also placed in three of four here but finished sixth then fifth at the last two starts.
Win bet on Little Richo, and Handsome Missile is the place play in the same race.
Race 8: Ladbrokes More On Tote Win (Bm62), 9:15PM, 1531m
Blue Bandit is the one horse on the card who has won more than once at Pakenham: two wins and a placing from four runs. The recent form is ordinary, one placing from three runs in the past 90 days, which is why Blue Bandit might be overlooked. Back at the best track and with 130kg, worth the chance.
Empressive Enuff is the danger and the safe-looking option, with four straight thirds in the form and placings in both runs over the last 90 days. Two placings from four starts here, no wins. Dundonald has the same story in a bigger sample, three placings from five Pakenham starts and no wins. Russian Front and Discover Lupino are both listed as non-runners, which takes two in-form horses out of the race.
Blue Bandit to win, with Empressive Enuff in a quinella.
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Where the money goes
NAP: Bee Admired (Race 5, 7:45PM). Track form, a winning last start and the lightest weight among the serious chances, trained by the best strike-rate stable on the card.
Value: Little Richo (Race 7, 8:45PM). Won last start and has won here before, but the rider’s light record at the track could leave the price better than it should be. No prices were up when this was written.
Banker: Wyandra (Race 3, 6:45PM). A placegetter on every Pakenham visit, with the track’s best partnership aboard.
Each-way: Lomu (Race 4, 7:15PM). Placed at each of the last three starts, and the place half pays even if the stable’s Pakenham drought holds.
Course angle: Nolen riding for P G Moody & Katherine Coleman. Nine wins from 28 together at this track, and they team up in five races tonight.
If Littlefield keeps winning with close to three in ten runners here, the stable’s Pakenham entries will be the first thing worth checking every Friday night.
Pakenham racing tips FAQ
What time does racing start at Pakenham today?
Race 1, The Valley @ Southside Pakenham Mdn Plate over 1750m, jumps at 5:45PM. The last, a Benchmark 62 over 1531m, is at 9:15PM.
Who are the top jockeys and trainers at Pakenham?
Lachlan Neindorf has the most wins among tonight’s riders at the track, 20 from 117 rides, and Damian Lane has placed on ten of 13 rides here. Among trainers, P G Moody & Katherine Coleman have 20 wins from 86 runners and C Maher has placed 36 of 66.
What are the best bets at Pakenham today?
Bee Admired in Race 5 is the NAP, Wyandra in Race 3 is the banker and Little Richo in Race 7 is the value play. Lomu in Race 4 is the each-way pick.
Where can I find the best Pakenham odds?
No bookmaker had priced the meeting when this was written. Each race heading links to the racecard on RacingBase, which shows the best available price from our partner bookmakers once markets open.
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