Champagne Stakes Preview and Tips 19/04/25

The Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival is drawing to a close, but not after we go out with one final bang though. We have two Group One races to close out the carnival, with the Champagne Stakes and All Aged Stakes both taking place at Randwick Racecourse this Saturday.

For the Champagne Stakes, we see a field of 12 runners expected to take part. It is another wide open field with Nepotism currently holding favouritism with PlayUp, at odds of $4.00. There are four other runners that you can pick up in single-digits, which include; Within The Law, State Visit, Buffalo and Bellazaine.

My Saturday tips for the Champagne Stakes have landed here at OnlyRacing. I also have my All Aged Stakes tips available, so make sure you check out the tips for that race before race time. All in all, I have five best bets for the Champagne Stakes, so there should be something for everyone.

I’m expecting a decent enough tempo for the 2025 Champagne Stakes with the likes of Bellazaine, in particular, set to push forward from barrier six, courtesy of her fast barrier speed. Spicy Lu and Lady Pankhurst will also likely all settle in closer to the front of the field as well.

In terms of the current pre-race favourite, Nepotism will probably settle in the mid-field or further back. Now, there are only 12 runners in this one, so there should be plenty of room for each runner to have their fair crack, as long as they are good enough. The only thing that could get in the way is a bump at the wrong time.

It’s difficult for me to go past the pre-race favourite in Nepotism. At the moment the 2YO is the narrow favourite, with odds of $4.00, thanks to PlayUp. The colt comes through the Baillieu Handicap (which produced the quinella in this race back in 2024) and he won that race by 1.4L.

In his run before that (his first career run), he finished third in the Group Two Todman Stakes. He has some pedigree with his breeding as well, being by Brutal and out of Brigite (who just happens to be the half-sister of Black Caviar). Makes the step up to the 1,600m, which I think suits and jockey Tyler Schiller sticks.

Within The Law is certainly good enough to win this one and Bet365 has the filly on the second line of betting, with odds of $5.00. Last time out, we saw Within The Law finish third by 1.9L in the Group Two Sykes Stakes. That was her first run back from the Golden Slipper where she suffered somewhat of a hiccup.

She is on the one-week back-up for the Champagne Stakes and considering her fast closing sectionals, I think she will enjoy the step up from the 1,200m to 1,600m in this one. She draws barrier three which should work in her favour as well. This will be her first attempt on a Soft-rated track and she has a third-up record of 1:0-1-0.

If you’re ready to spice up your life then Spicy Lu should be considered! Dabble is currently offering $13 for Spicy Lu to win the Champagne Stakes. The filly comes into this one in red-hot form and is looking to make it four wins on the trot. When compared to her previous runs, this is certainly a step up, but you can’t knock that form.

She seems to be progressing through the gears nicely and last time out she claimed a win in the Listed Fernhill Mile, which is also raced at Randwick across the 1,600m. Jockey Rachel King was on board for her last victory and she saddles up again. The Fernhill Mile has produced some quality winners over the last few years, including Broadsiding.

Looking at the speed map, Bellazaine seems to be the clear leader. Can she lead for the entire race? I’m not exactly sure, but I do think she is in with a real shot here and might have been somewhat overlooked in the field. At the moment, QuestBet is offering $9.50 for Bellazaine to get the win on Saturday.

We last saw the 2YO in the Inglis Sires Produce Stakes where she led, but it was a fast tempo, so she was fading a bit in the end. However, she still managed to stay within 2L of the leader, Vinrock. She looks to be a runner on the improve and she continues to rise in distance. Let’s see how she goes.

Federalist is another that is coming through the Inglis Sires Produce Stakes, where the colt finished seventh out of 10 runners. He didn’t get much luck in his first career start where Buffalo got the win. In his last run, he once again didn’t get any luck and was bumped a couple of times before running home fairly strongly.

The 2YO is currently going around with odds of $19 with Bet Right. Federalist is the first foal from the highly successful Arcadia Queen. Jockey Nash Rawiller retains the ride as well and I think he’ll have a better handle on how Federalist runs this time out. He jumps from barrier nine and will probably settle in near the middle of the field.

All my Champagne Stakes horse racing tips and their odds can be found here:

Bookmaker	Tip	Odds
	Nepotism (win)	$4.00
	Within The Law (each-way)	$5.00/$2.05
	Spicy Lu (place)	$3.70
	Bellazaine (place)	$2.95
	Federalist (place)	$4.40