10 January 2018 | Ken Casellas
Hall of Fame trainer Gary Hall Snr reports that West Australia’s best pacer Chicago Bull is spot on for a tilt at the $300,000 Retravision Fremantle Cup at Gloucester Park on Friday night and he has hopes of winning the big race for a record eighth time.
Chicago Bull has drawn somewhat awkwardly at barrier four on the front line and Hall said that his son, Gary Hall Jnr, planned to drive the diminutive five-year-old aggressively
“Going forward, that’s the plan,” Hall Snr said. “Well, that’s what Junior is saying. So, Chicago Bull will go forward and if Bettors Fire (barrier one) doesn’t hand up, we will keep the breeze and keep Lazarus three wide when he comes.
“Everyone has got Lazarus past the post and If we just let him go to the breeze, the race will develop into a walk with a sprint home and Chicago Bull can’t win then. We can’t make it easy for Lazarus. My owners don’t want to make it easy for him. I think Chicago Bull can win, but he will need a lot of luck.
“I would have liked Chicago Bull to have drawn where he could lead and I reckon that leading, he would go close. He is a better horse now than when he won the Fremantle Cup last year. He’s stronger.”
Chicago Bull, who finished a splendid second to Lazarus in the Inter Dominion championship final five Fridays ago, maintained his excellent form when he ran home strongly from sixth at the bell to finish a half-length second to Bettors Fire in the 1730m Village Kid Sprint last Friday week.
The powerful Hall stable will also be represented in Friday night’s Cup by eight-year-olds Ohoka Punter and My Hard Copy, who will start from barriers six and seven, respectively.
Stuart McDonald will handle Ohoka Punter and Clint Hall will be in the sulky behind dual WA Pacing Cup winner My Hard Copy, who started from barrier nine when he finished strongly to be second to Beaudiene Boaz in the 2016 Fremantle Cup.
“My Hard Copy is absolutely flying and is working as good as Chicago Bull,” said Hall Snr “From barrier six he will go back at the start. Don’t forget that he has won two WA Pacing Cups from barrier nine.
”Barrier seven won’t help Ohoka Punter. However, he’s going all right, even though he might be a bit past it.”
Clint Hall said that My Hard Copy would need plenty of speed in the race to be a realistic chance. “If things get silly, he could certainly knock them out, late,” he said. “I’m pretty excited about his prospects.
“He led and won first-up, beating Bettors Fire and A Piccadilly Princess and then at his next start he was unlucky when he finished right on the back of them in the Village Kid Sprint when he didn’t get clear and still had something to offer.”
Clint Hall has yet to win a Fremantle Cup, a race that has been won eight times by his younger brother Gary. Gary Hall Snr has won the Cup seven times with The Falcon Strike (2002 and 2004), Im Themightyquinn (2010-11-12), Beaudiene Boaz (2016) and Chicago Bull (2017).
For good measure, Hall has also trained the second placegetter in the Fremantle Cup on eight occasions with Tricky Bey (1993), Our London Pride (2001), De Galdearno (2006), Kotare Flame (2007), Alzona (2010), Im Themightyquinn (2013), Northview Punter (2015) and My Hard Copy (2016). He has also trained three third placegetters Fac Et Spiro (2008), Dartmoor (2010) and Im Themightyquinn (2009).
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