by Chris Barsby
Impressive youngster Colt Thirty One remains unbeaten.
And punched his ticket for a trip south to Sydney to chase the $322,000 Australian Pacing Gold series, the final is scheduled for April 29 at TABCORP Park, Menangle.
The Grant Dixon prepared rookie sat without cover to claim the Brisbane heat of the series at Albion Park last night (Tuesday) defeating his stablemate Ark Patrol and Lucky Unlucky in a time of 1:59.2.
In a race that developed into a sprint home, the last quarter was timed in 27.8 seconds.
Unfortunately, the race was robbed of interest with race favourite Maywyns Courage taking no competitive part following a break in the score-up.
Colt Thirty One is two for two following his debut victory at Albion Park on February 21.
“He’s a nice horse with a good attitude and I was really pleased with his effort, sitting parked and then sprinting a fast last section was very good.” Dixon said.
The Mach Three – Charm Personified colt was the clear favourite for the Wayne Wilson Paleface Adios Classic on March 4 before his scratching.
The half-brother to Charming Allie (18 wins – $266k) had a minor issue with his hock.
“His hock was up but he wasn’t lame and I wasn’t prepared to risk him for that race so I just backed off on him for a while there and now he’s back to full health. His winning trial last week in readiness for this assignment was very good and gave me good confidence.
“He relaxed really well outside the leader and quickened nicely when I asked for a little more passing the 400m marker and felt strong through the line.
“I’ve always rated him from an early stage and so far, so good but it’s only going to get harder going forward. It looks a very strong series judging by the results of the Sydney and Melbourne heats.”
Melbourne heat winners were Lumineer, Stefsbest and Yankee Roller while the Sydney heat winners included Maximus Red, Be Major Threat and Sicario.
Both Lumineer and Sicario have created plenty of interest following their ultra-impressive victories.
The semi-finals of the APG are scheduled for April 22.
Dixon is no stranger to success in the Australian Pacing Gold Final following his victory with Majestic Mach back in 2012.
Both Majestic Mach and Colt Thirty One are bred and raced by Kevin and Kay Seymour.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
Driving The Future Of Harness Racing
