PB Lawrence Stakes 2026 Betting Tips - Cosmic Crusader Leads the Charge

Alex Marsh

Editor

Last updated: Wed 12 Aug 2026 10:40

Alex Marsh 1 hour ago

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Cosmic Crusader is the top tip and market favourite for the 2026 PB Lawrence Stakes after a dominant win
Feroce (value bet) and Pinstriped (roughie) are each-way contenders
This race serves as a key launching pad for leading spring contenders aiming for Group 1 targets

Will Cosmic Crusader go back-to-back? (Getty)

The PB Lawrence Stakes headlines Saturday's Caulfield meeting, with this Group 2 feature traditionally serving as an important starting point for some of the spring's leading middle-distance and WFA contenders.

2026 PB Lawrence Stakes Tips
2026 PB Lawrence Stakes - Field & Odds

Worth $300,000 and contested over 1400m, the PB Lawrence Stakes regularly attracts a quality field of established performers and emerging spring hopefuls, with Mr Brightside, Hartnell, Shoot Out and Apache Cat among the notable names to have won the race.

At $2.50 with BetRight, Cosmic Crusader heads the market for the 2026 PB Lawrence Stakes

2026 PB Lawrence Stakes Tips

2026 PB Lawrence Stakes Best Bet - Cosmic Crusader

Opinions were somewhat divided on Cosmic Crusader ahead of his Melbourne debut in the Group 3 Bletchingly Stakes on July 25, with the gelding arriving there off just one jump-out, albeit an impressive one at Caulfield earlier in the month.

The 1200m was expected to prove too sharp for him, but he left the knockers with egg on their faces, working home through the inferior going along the inside and still recording a dominant two-and-a-half-length victory.

Things only get harder from here if he is to progress to Group 1 level, with the Underwood Stakes perhaps the most winnable major target for him this spring, but that first-up performance provides an excellent platform from which to attack the PB Lawrence Stakes.

Most of his key rivals are resuming, while Cosmic Crusader is four-from-four on soft tracks and relished the Soft 6 last start, with William Pike travelling east for the ride and the wider draw giving him options over a more suitable 1400m.

He has three wins and three placings from six attempts at the distance, while his second-up record reads three wins and a second from four starts, and he was always going to be well found following that return victory.

2026 PB Lawrence Stakes Value Bet - Feroce

The Dominic Sutton-trained galloper has not tasted victory since his Group 1 Australian Guineas success in 2025, although making the transition out of age-restricted company and into a four-year-old season is rarely straightforward.

There have still been several highly competitive efforts across his past few preparations, with two of his best coming over the Caulfield 1400m, including a third-place finish in the Group 1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes when second-up last spring.

His best performance last campaign came first-up over this track and trip on February 7, when it took a huge effort from the classy Tom Kitten to deny him, and that galloper subsequently franked the form by winning the All-Star Mile at his next start.

Both winter jump-out's leading into this preparation have been sound, with Feroce given a quiet workout in the first and while lacking the dash for an 800m heat, he was still strong past the line in his second hit-out.

Testing ground is an unknown, however early in a prep has always been the time to catch the son of Super Seth, with all three of his wins coming either first or second-up.

2026 PB Lawrence Stakes Roughie - Pinstriped

Last season looked as though it might mark the beginning of the end for Pinstriped, but his recent trial work at Cranbourne offered encouragement before another sound performance on resumption at Caulfield on July 11.

Carrying 62kg over this track-and-trip, he was a little slow away from a wide barrier and settled back in the field as a result, but worked home strongly enough to record the second-fastest final 200m of the race on a Soft 7.

The veteran has proven himself across all surfaces during his career and, while never the easiest horse to catch, the son of Street Boss owns a strong second-up record that includes three victories.

Among those was his career highlight in 2024, when he defeated Mr Brightside in the Group 1 Memsie Stakes over the Caulfield 1400m after finishing runner-up in the PB Lawrence Stakes at his previous start.

While not at his best last spring, there were still some good references, including a fifth in the Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes and fourth-of-seven in the Group 1 CF Orr Stakes over this track and distance, while he is capable of settling closer from a kinder draw this time.

2026 PB Lawrence Stakes - Field & Odds

No.	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Barrier	Weight	Odds
1	Private Eye	Joseph Pride	Nash Rawiller	12	59kg	$4.20
2	Evaporate (NZ)	Ben, Will & JD Hayes	Blake Shinn	11	59kg	$6.25
3	Attrition	Mitchell Freedman	Ethan Brown	5	59kg	$51
4	Desert Lightning (NZ)	Peter G Moody & Katherine Coleman	Luke Nolen	3	59kg	$11
5	Pinstriped	Enver Jusufovic	Lachlan Neindorf	4	59kg	$23
6	Feroce (NZ)	Dominic Sutton	Billy Egan	9	59kg	$9.50
7	Cosmic Crusader (NZ)	Andrea Leek	William Pike	8	59kg	$2.50
8	Wootton Verni (FR)	Chris Waller	Ben Melham	7	59kg	$51
9	Soul Of Spain (IRE)	Chris Waller	Craig Williams	10	59kg	$91
10	Regal Zeus	John McArdle	Jamie Mott	13	59kg	$51
11	Kings Valley (IRE)	Ciaron Maher	John Allen	2	59kg	$61
12	Coeur Volante (NZ)	Ben, Will & JD Hayes	Jamie Melham	6	57kg	$12
13	Ohope Wins (NZ)	Chris Waller	Damian Lane	1	56.5kg	$19

Odds provided by BetRight & correct on 12/08/2026.

Verdict

PB Lawrence Stakes

Our tips for the 2026 PB Lawrence Stakes are:

Cosmic Crusader

To Win

$2.50 - 6 Units

Same Race Multi & Instant Deposit

Referral Code: BETS

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Bet at Bet Right

Feroce

Each Way

$9.50 - 3 Units

Same Race Multi & Instant Deposit

Referral Code: BETS

Bet at Bet Right

Pinstriped

Each Way

$23.00 - 1 Unit

Same Race Multi & Instant Deposit

Referral Code: BETS