Punters hold fire, but day one of The Championships to go ahead at Randwick

Railton walked the sodden Randwick track on Friday afternoon after it had been soaked by more than 80 millimetres of rain.

“The track actually surprised me how well it had coped with the rain,” Railton said. “It was only a heavy 8 [on Friday] and would have been raceable when we looked at it.

“It had been dry leading into this week, and that has helped a lot.

Ladbrokes reported punters “were taking a wait-and-see approach to Sydney’s second biggest race meeting”.

“Punters are very cautious for a Friday before such a big meeting,” Ladbrokes’ Adam Hamilton said. “Usually they are keen to back one or two in most races.”

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Another Wil remains the Doncaster favourite at $3.70 in a market that has changed little, although money for Militarize pushed the three-time group 1 winner into second pick at $8.50.

Premier Hong Kong jockey Zac Purton flew in on Friday morning to ride the Dundeel three-year-old and a number of other group 1 chances.

“At least I know he has won on a heavy track at Randwick and won over a mile as well,” Purton said. “But when the track gets this wet, the form really goes out the window. It becomes more about riding the track and finding the right place to be.

“Militarize is certainly good enough to win a Doncaster, but mostly the three-year-olds that do it don’t have to carry 54 kilos, so he will need to be pretty good to win it.”