18 January 2018 | Ken Casellas
Seven-year-old Three Blind Mice is flourishing this season for Busselton trainer Barry Howlett after niggling injuries hampered his progress last season when he managed just one win from 22 starts.
The clash between Three Blind Mice, winner of the 2014 WA Derby, and Handsandwheels, the 2017 Derby winner, promises to be a highlight on the ten-event program at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
They will meet in the third heat of the Super Pick Nights of Thunder, in which they will not have things all their own way when their opposition includes the speedy Johnny Disco and ten-year-old veteran Cut For An Ace, fresh from contesting the Inter Dominion championship series and ideally drawn at the No. 1 barrier.
There will be no dawdling in the three Nights of Thunder heats, with the nine pacers with the fastest mile rates over the 1730m qualifying for the final.
Three Blind Mice has been placed once from three starts over 1730m, but he warmed up in excellent fashion for this week’s sprint when he set the pace from barrier one and won easily from Ohoka Darcy and Johnny Disco at a 1.55.6 rate over 2130m four Fridays ago. He dashed over the final quarters in 28sec. and 28.1sec.
Three Blind Mice is awkwardly drawn at barrier five and Gary Hall Jnr is likely to make use of the gelding’s gate speed in a spirited bid for the early lead, or the position outside the pacemaker.
Handsandwheels, trained at Capel by Andrew de Campo and driven by his son Aiden, is in splendid form, with two wins and a second placing from his past three starts. He will begin from the No. 6 barrier.
Cut For An Ace will have a legion of admirers, dropping considerably in class after contesting the Inters, in which his best effort was in a 2536m heat in which he raced three back on the pegs and finished fourth behind San Carlo, Soho Tribeca and Lennytheshark. If those three pacers were in Friday night’s race they would be at a prohibitive odds-on quote.
Johnny Disco, trained at Pinjarra by Ross Ashby, is a sprint specialist and speedy frontrunner. He will start out wide at barrier seven and Chris Lewis will be tempted to take full advantage of his sparkling early speed.
Abraxas Blues, a convincing winner over Major Catastrophe and El Machine over 2130m last Friday night, will be fancied in the second heat of the Nights of Thunder after drawing the favourable No. 2 barrier.
“Whether we can cross the polemarker Aussie Delight is debatable,” Prentice said. “But we will be having a crack. I thought he would go super last week, and he did.”
Americanbootscoota, trained by Debra Lewis, looks a major player from barrier four and Chris Lewis is expected to make full use of the gelding’s excellent gate speed.
The Bob Mellsop-trained Real Lucky has won at four of his past five starts and cannot be left out of calculations from barrier five. He finished powerfully to win easily from Mighty Flying Deal and Kerrin Joseph over 2130m last week.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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