Perth's summer carnival builds over the next three Saturdays, and dual Winterbottom winner Overpass heads the early betting for the $1.5 million sprint on November 28.
With the Melbourne Cup carnival wrapped up, the national spotlight swings west. Perth's summer carnival at Ascot builds over the next three Saturdays, and the early betting for the Group 1 Winterbottom Stakes is already taking shape.
The carnival dates
- Saturday 14 November: Champion Fillies' Day, Ascot
- Saturday 21 November: Railway Stakes Day, Ascot (Group 1, 1600m)
- Saturday 28 November: Winterbottom Stakes Day, Ascot (Group 1, 1200m, $1.5 million)
The Winterbottom is a weight-for-age sprint for three-year-olds and up, and it has been a Group 1 since 2011.
Overpass tries for a third
Bjorn Baker's eight-year-old Overpass sits at the top of the early market. He won the Winterbottom in 2023 and 2024, and last year he went within a nose of a third when Libertad, trained by Annabel and Rob Archibald, edged him out. His most recent run was a solid third in the Group 2 Sydney Stakes at Randwick on October 17.
The challengers
- Bassett Hound – Mitchell Pateman's gelding is unbeaten in five starts and won over 1000m at Ascot on October 24. The local hope.
- Rey Magnerio – Robbie Griffiths' sprinter won the Century Stakes over 1000m at Flemington last Thursday. He knows Ascot, having won the Gold Rush there in 2025.
- Point Barrow – the Freedman brothers' mare upset Tempted in the Group 1 Champions Sprint at Flemington on Saturday and is among the early fancies.
Others in the early betting include Headwall, King Of Light, Jigsaw and War Machine.
The punting angle
Overpass has the record, but he is now eight, and last year's nose defeat shows how fine the margins are. Watch whether the eastern sprinters actually make the trip west. Early markets often include horses that never arrive, so wait for acceptances before you get too keen on any of them. Bassett Hound's unbeaten run will be tested by a big step up in class, and the Railway Stakes form on November 21 will give the next clues.