18 July 2019 | Ken Casellas
Red Hot Lady was an 80/1 outsider when ninth behind Some Copper Beach in the group 3 Gold Bracelet last Friday week, but reinsman Shannon Suvaljko suggested that punters should overlook that failure and give her another chance when she contests the $50,000 APG championship for two-year-olds at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“She was unlucky in the Bracelet when she started from barrier seven and raced four back on the rails,” Suvaljko said. “She wanted to run up all the way and I couldn’t drive her. The Murphy blind is coming off her this week and this is her chance.
“She starts from the No. 1 barrier and they won’t cross her. She’s real quick off the arm. Three starts ago, on debut, she led and ran home in 56.7sec. to win easily at Pinjarra. She’s my best drive on the program.”
Red Hot Lady, trained by Katja Warwick, is one of three fillies in Friday night’s feature event in which Valentines Brook, Marcotti, Poisedtopounce and Jaxon Jones will have many admirers.
Valentines Brook is a smart gelding trained by Mike Reed and looks set to fight out the finish after starting from barrier four. He has not raced since June 4 when he was checked and broke early before working hard in the breeze and finishing second to Jaxon Jones. He had a tough run without cover when a Northam winner two starts ago and also won from the breeze at Gloucester Park two starts before that. He will be driven for the first time by Gary Hall jun., who replaces Mark Reed, who is serving a ten-day term of suspension.
Marcotti is a promising gelding in the stables of Michael Brennan and has the ability to overcome the disadvantage of starting from barrier six. He has not appeared since he led from the No. 1 barrier and finished third behind Valentines Brook and Poisedtopounce at Gloucester Park on April 9. That followed two all-the-way wins at his only other starts — at Bunbury and Gloucester Park.
His city win was in the Western Crown Classic for colts and geldings in March when he beat Keptain Courageous and Valentines Brook.
Earlier in the program, Warwick and Suvaljko will join forces with redoubtable seven-year-old Tommy Be Good in race four in which the gelding will need a shade of luck from the outside barrier in the field of eight in the 2536m event.
“Tommy Be Good will go good over the 2500m and is capable of winning if the pace is solid,” Suvaljko said.
Tommy Be Good settled down in eighth position from barrier eight in a 2130m Free-For-All last Saturday night before dashing forward to obtain a favourable passage, one-out and one-back, and finishing a sound fourth behind Herrick Roosevelt. The previous week Tommy Be Good led from barrier one and won convincingly from Herrick Roosevelt and Waylade over 2130m.
All eight runners in this week’s race have winning claims, with trainer Ross Olivieri predicting Im Full of Excuses would show significant improvement from the prized No. 1 barrier. “He’s a very good chance of leading and breaking a losing run of 18,” he said.
Veteran Our Jimmy Johnstone (barrier two) also will have many admirers after catching the eye with a brilliant finishing burst which saw him finish a head second to Vampiro over 2130m last Saturday night.
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