George Ryder Stakes Preview and Tips 22/03/25

It’s Golden Slipper Day at Rosehill Racecourse on Saturday and you know what that means? A whole stack of Group One races! There are five races at Rosehill including the George Ryder Stakes, the Golden Slipper, the Rosehill Guineas, the Ranvet Stakes and The Galaxy. On top of this, the William Reid Stakes is run on the same day at Moonee Valley.

For the 2025 George Ryder Stakes, we see a field of 11 runners confirmed and it’s a fairly open field. PlayUp currently has Fangirl down as the pre-race favourite, but there are plenty of other quality runners hot on her heels. The likes of Royal Patronage, Ceolwulf and Tom Kitten are all listed with odds of $6.50 or shorter.

It’s a massive day of racing and my Saturday tips cover all the Group One races! Here at OnlyRacing, you have a lot of reading to do as I’ve got tips for all six of the key races this Saturday. I’ve gone through all 11 runners and reviewed their chances for success, so you can check out my best bets right here.

The pace of the George Ryder Stakes will probably be as fast as Royal Patronage wants to take it. He seems to be the only runner with serious barrier speed (jumping from barrier three), however, you can’t Gringotts, who will likely be on his tail and jumps from barrier four. Buckaroo is another that might want to fight it out for a leading position.

The current pre-race favourite, Fangirl, will probably look to settle near the rear of the field. It’s not the biggest of fields, so this does work to her advantage as there will be less traffic to navigate through as she tries to claim yet another Group One victory. Her closing speed is among the fastest in the race, so watch her fly late.

I’m actually going around the favourite for my best bet in the 2025 George Ryder Stakes. I think Ceolwulf has a great chance to claim this third Group One victory on Saturday and the gelding is currently paying $5.50 with PlayUp, which slots him in on the third line of betting, as one of the more favoured runners.

Ceolwulf comes into this one third-up but is yet to see the winner’s stall. First-up she finished fourth in the Apollo Stakes and last time out she finished fifth in the Canterbury Stakes. He’s a runner that I think will relish the 1,500m that’s on offer in the George Ryder Stakes. On top of this, Chad Schofield, his regular rider, returns to the saddle again.

Boy does this girl have a lot of class and it would be silly for me not to include Fangirl in my set of tips for the George Ryder Stakes. Fangirl is the favourite with Bet365 at the moment and she is paying $3.20 to take the win. As one of just two girls in the race on Saturday, she’ll be carrying 2kg less than the boys, which is another tick in the win column.

Her prep so far has been quite successful, with a win in the Apollo Stakes first-up and then a second in the Verry Elleegant Stakes last time out. She’ll enjoy the distance that’s on offer and Rosehill Racecourse is her home track. We all know how successful the Chris Waller - James McDonald combo is and it could foster another winner here.

Another tip, another female! Along with Fangirl, Stefi Magnetica is the only other female in this race and therefore is carrying 2kg less than the rest of the field. If you’re looking for value Stefi Magnetica is a great option and with Dabble you can pick up the mare for $10 to win, at the time of writing.

She tackled the Canterbury Stakes first up and did have a couple of excuses, finishing eighth out of 11 runners. The 4YO should enjoy jumping from barrier five and gets the services of Jason Collett this time out. In her last attempt at Rosehill over the 1,500m, she was checked in The Golden Eagle and ended up finishing fifth, so there is potential there.

If anyone is going to give my top picks for the George Ryder Stakes a run for their money, I think it will be Tom Kitten. The gelding enjoys the Rosehill track and the last time we saw him, he won the All-Star Mile beating home the likes of Mr Brightside and Another Wil that day, winning by just 0.1L.

If you like the look of Tom Kitten, the 4YO is currently on the fourth line of betting with QuestBet, paying $6.75. Will be all the fitter for the two runs under his belt and with just even luck on his side, he’ll be right in the finish. I think he’ll be right in the finish, so he is certainly a serious contender.

Honestly, they aren’t giving Celestial Legend a sniff of a chance in the markets. Bet Right currently has the 4YO going around with among some of the highest odds, at $61. I’m willing to take a chance on him though, popping on a small place bet (but you can include him in your wider exotics if you so desire).

The booking of Hugh Bowman helps his chances, but I don’t think it’s enough for him to win this one. Finished strong enough in the Canterbury Stakes last time out to warrant a second look. The stallion is a Group One winner, taking out the Randwick Guineas and Doncaster Mile during the Autumn in 2024, so he does know what it takes to perform on the big stage.

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

Bookmaker	Tip	Odds
	Ceolwulf (win)	$5.50
	Fangirl (each-way)	$3.20/$1.55
	Stefi Magnetica (place)	$2.80
	Tom Kitten (each-way)	$6.75/$2.20
	Celestial Legend (place)	$8.50