Qualifying Races

The Basics of how each stable was built, how horses enter the stable and how our judicious selections are made…

  • We concentrate on Maiden races conducted in the State of Victoria, Australia.

  • The races are Maiden races, races for contestants that have not won a race previously.

  • We concentrate on Maiden races with a current total prize money for each race of either 27,000 AUD or 37,500 AUD. These amounts are about to increase.

  • We concentrate on Maiden races ran over distances from 1000 to 1600 metres.

  • We do keep some data for races ran over other distances

  • We concentrate on races using the above criteria but only where we have relevant data on a minimum 400 runners from previous races run. 300 runners for 3 year old races.

  • We concentrate of Open maidens and 3yo Maidens

  • We do keep some date on both Fillies and Mares Maidens and 4yo and Up Maidens

  • We have over 6000 maiden races, contested by more than 60000 horses in the data base

  • We will continue to build the database.

  • The race results are then stored by race type, race type at the track, by SP,by distance, by track condition, by month, by field size and by day of the week.

  • We use the normal form criteria as most punters, professional and recreational alike, we then apply out secret weapon.

  • We also keep records of both jockey’s and trainer’s and they are then sorted into most of the above categories as well.

Stables

As you would have noticed on our home page, Form A to Zyrg currently has 9 “stables”.

As our records increased in volume we started to notice trends.

Our first task was to establsih a method that could equally measure race times across tracks and across track conditions. This continues to be our toughest task. Our Annual review of this stable was concluded in June 2025 and we expect this stable to have a greatly increased in Strike Rate the 2025/26 season. FYI, this stable is Stable H.

Two of the stables are formed by handicapping previous maiden winners, we find some future higher rated winners from this handicapping methos as well as future maiden winners. We’ll let you know when we like one. Did you know that Mr Brightide won his maiden at Geelong and Asfoora, who went on to win at Ascot won his Maiden on a Saturday at Colac? That’s Ascot in the United Kingdom not Ascot in Perth.

Another stable is based on the race type it won and only at a handful of tracks.

Others are based on the strength of the race it is coming out of and by the distance it was defeated by. We noticed and continue to notice that in some maiden types, those beaten by 4 lenghts win more often than those beaten by a short head.

Finally, we have all heard about the SP profile and In the past Zyrg scoffed at such things, no more. But again, it’s not always the shortest priced runners, beaten at their last, the have the best SP profile. There are some real surprises when you compile the data.

So, our stables are a real bunch of licorice all sorts and when one run tops the polls in the number of stables in one race, look out.

Our database is not the be all and end all of the From A to Zyrg. Our founder and Chief Racing Analyst, Zyrg, provides the much needed human touch to the selections.

Find out more about Zyrg and how and why From A to Zyrg begun.

Oakleigh Plate version here

Melbourne Cup version here.

Nossy the Hare

Our Founder and Chief Racing Analyst, Zyrg, was chatting to a person one day and Englsih was not this persons native language. He was explaining how the word “form” had a number of meanings and uses. Now the person he was talking to was a very inquisitive person and off she went to do her own research. Not 5 minutes later she was back and explained to Zyrg that a hare’s nest was know as a form. The teacher had become the taught. Zyrg then told her the old Dad’s joke about the the magician who couldn’t pull a rabbit out of his hat but could pull a hair out of his …er, nose and Nossy the Mascot for Form A to Zyrg was born.

If a race does not have any Nossy’s mentioned it is a poor betting proposition. If you see a race with five Nossy’s, get excited.