06 February 2020 | Ken Casellas
A change in her training routine is paying dividends for exciting filly Double Expresso, who has bright prospects of overcoming an awkward draw at barrier six and winning the $50,000 Dainty’s Daughter Classic at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Astute Oakford trainer Ross Olivieri is confident that Double Expresso will give him his first success in the classic for three-year-old fillies and star reinsman Chris Lewis his third win in the race after succeeding with Five Hundred More in 2005 and Sheer Royalty in 2009.
Double Expresso, a winner at eight of her 11 starts, warmed up for this week’s classic with a devastating performance to win a 2185m trial at Pinjarra last Sunday week, rating 1.55.6 with her final four 400m sections of 29.5sec.,29.3sec., 27.8sec. and 28.1sec.
She began fast from the outside of the front line to burst to the front after 80m. She led by two lengths at the 400m and romped home, unextended, by about eight lengths from Farawayeyes.
“That trial was a test to see how she was going after a change in her training,” said Olivieri. “A win in that fast time was a very good result. We wanted to keep her off the hard tracks and work her in the sand, galloping and working in the jog cart. And she loves it.
“We’re very happy with her at the moment. And the way she went in the trial, you’d have to be happy with her. She had plenty up her sleeve.”
Olivieri has a second string in this week’s race in Run For Mercy, who will be driven by Chris Voak from the No. 2 barrier on the back line.
“Her run when fourth behind I Work Out at Northam last Saturday night was disappointing,” said Olivieri. “We’ve changed a few things around with her and, hopefully, she will respond.”
Suing You, Tiffany Rose and Star Fromthepalace loom as the main rivals for Double Expresso whose main aim this season is the $150,000 WA Oaks on May 1.
Suing You, trained at Boyanup by Justin Prentice, will be handled by champion reinsman Gary Hall Jnr and will start from barrier No. 5 on the front line. Suing You, a winner of three races as a two-year-old, has resumed after a spell in fine style, with her first three outings as a three-year-old producing a first-up Pinjarra win, a head second to Double Expresso and an all-the-way victory at Gloucester Park.
“She is a very nice filly and her three runs back have been good,” Prentice said. “She’s definitely up to the fillies on Friday night. It was a good run two starts ago when second to Double Expresso. At the time I thought that whatever she did that night she would improve on. I said to Junior (Hall) I don’t think I’ve got her quite right, so drive her conservatively.
“I think that he might have under-driven her a little bit; and he was really happy with the way she went.” Hall also has a high opinion of Suing You, saying: “Double Expresso’s trial was off the map, but I think Suing You is capable of beating her. If Star Fromthepalace leads, she also capable of winning.”
Star Fromthepalace, to be driven by Deni Roberts for Byford trainer Peter Anderson, is sure to be prominent throughout from the prized No. 1 barrier.
“She’s a talented filly who has matured from her two-year-old days,” said Anderson. “Everything has worked perfectly this preparation, two strong trials at Byford and a first-up win at Pinjarra. I reckon she is among the best half dozen fillies in the State.”
Star Fromthepalace is a tough staying type, who will take catching if she is able to hold the lead and set the pace. However, if she is headed in the first circuit, she should enjoy an ideal trail behind the pacemaker and is capable of unwinding a spirited finishing burst.
The New Zealand-bred Tiffany Rose will have many admirers, particularly after drawing the No. 3 barrier on the front line for Henley Brook trainer Mike Reed and reinsman Michael Grantham. After being placed at seven of her eight starts in New Zealand, Tiffany Rose won easily at her first five starts in Western Australia before finishing a brilliant, fast-finishing third to Double Expresso and then covering a lot of extra ground before fading to last behind talented colt Howard Hughes at her past two starts.
Owners Jim and Wilma Giumelli are hoping that Tiffany Rose can make up for the disappointment of Arma Indie, starting from the outside barrier and surging home from last to finish second to the pacemaker Typhoon Tiff in last year’s Dainty’s Daughter Classic.
Typhoon Tiff gave trainer-driver Colin Brown his second success in the feature event (after driving Centrefold Angel to a head victory over Ella Sue in 2010) and he is hoping for a strong effort from Farawayeyes, who will start out wide at barrier seven. Farawayeyes is an improving filly who has raced nine times for two wins and five placings.
My Sweet Deal and Some Copper Beach are smart types but will need a shade of luck from barriers eight and nine, respectively.
My Sweet Deal, trained by David Hunter in Collie, will again be driven by Stuart McDonald, who has handled the filly at all of her 12 starts for seven wins, four seconds and a third placing.
Aiden de Campo trains and drives Some Copper Beach, who has won at six of her 13 starts. She has been off the scene since finishing sixth behind Tiffany Rose at Gloucester Park on December 6. “She was just a bit disappointing after a good first-up win, so I have given her a light freshen-up,” said de Campo.
“She’s been in work long enough to be forward enough. But barrier nine hurts us a lot. She seems to go better when driven forward and all of her good races have been when she’s been on-speed, going forward. There is a lot of speed inside of us, but it is more than likely that she’ll come across with them and then try to find a hole. Hopefully, we can slot in somewhere and run home late.”
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