07 May 2020 | Ken Casellas
Five-year-old mare Divinia Bellezza has won at only five of her 48 starts in New Zealand, but she has excellent prospects of making a successful Australian debut when she starts from barrier No. 3 on the front line in the Fresh Express Handicap, a stand over 2096m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Divinia Bellezza arrived in Western Australia a month ago and is prepared by leading trainers Greg and Skye Bond. She is an experienced standing-start performer, having had six starts in a stand for third placings over 2000m and 2700m.
Her latest appearance in a stand was 22 starts ago when she began smartly off the 15m mark in a 2000m event at Addington on December 21, 2018, raced in seventh position in an Indian file affair and finished a well-beaten sixth behind Kendra, who dashed over the final 800m in 56.1sec.
At her final appearance in New Zealand Divinia Bellezza scored an impressive victory in a 2500m mobile event at Manawatu on February 13 this year. From the No. 2 barrier she burst to the front after 50m and 450m later took the sit behind Play Ball. She was fifth on the home turn before using the sprint lane to take the lead 120m from the post on her way to winning easily by more than a length from Benjamin Button, rating a modest 2.3.3
But a true indication of her ability was demonstrated ten starts ago when she finished second to the $1.10 favourite Ella Mac in the $150,000 group 1 Diamond Classic for four-year-old mares over 1980m at Addington on June 1 last year. She started from barrier two on the back line and was 11TH at the bell before sustaining a strong finishing burst.
Among her five wins in mobiles, Divinia Bellezza was successful in 1.54.2 over 1609m at Winton in February 2019.
By American Ideal, Divinia Bellezza is the first foal out of Courage Under Fire mare Siena Franco, who won once from seven starts in New Zealand before racing 64 times in WA for ten wins and 15 placings.
Siena Franco failed at her WA debut, setting the pace before fading to last behind Rebecca Amy at Bunbury’s Donaldson Park track in November 2010 before winning at her next appearance, at Gloucester Park the following February when she was backed from 12/1 to 6/1, made all the running and defeated the outstanding three-year-old filly and 3/1 on favourite Artemis Belle by just over a length.
Divinia Bellezza will be driven by Dylan Egerton-Green and her toughest opponent on Friday night looms large as stablemate The Bird Dance, the lone backmarker off 20m who will be handled by the Bond camp’s No. 1 driver Ryan Warwick.
The Bird Dance, a talented New Zealand-bred four-year-old, is in superb form and he gave a tremendous performance to win a 2631m stand at Pinjarra on Monday afternoon. He was last in a field of ten in the middle stages before Warwick set him alight with a sparkling three-wide burst approaching the bell. This carried him to the front 850m from home and he went on to win effortlessly at a 1.57.9 rate from Rum Delight and Destined To Rule.
The Bird Dance has won at ten of his 13 WA starts after two wins from five starts in New Zealand. He is destined for big things in the next few years.
His victory at Pinjarra on Monday completed a magnificent afternoon for the 41-year-old Warwick, who had five drives for five victories on the program, also scoring with Jett Star, Rocko Fitz, Missplay and Parmesan.
This followed Warwick’s three drives for three wins behind Weewah, Poisedtopounce and Nikasa at Bunbury on Saturday night. Then, at Gloucester Park on Tuesday evening, Warwick’s first drive resulted in a runaway, all-the-way victory with Flying Mister Ideal to give him a record-breaking nine wins from nine consecutive drives.
His unbroken sequence of wins ended when $126 rank outsider Impressive Signs finished last in a field of 12 in the following event. Warwick’s next and final drive at the meeting saw him drive aggressively to land Weewah a smart winner over the hot favourite Caveman in the last race of the day.
Warwick’s purple patch of nine straight victories is a West Australian and Australian record. The previous WA record of six wins from six consecutive drives was held by Phil Coulson, Darren Kerr, Gary Hall Jnr and Warwick.
Coulson notched his six wins in a row over two meetings at Gloucester Park in 1978, Kerr performed the feat over four meetings just over a decade ago, Hall’s six wins from consecutive drives was achieved at Gloucester Park when he scored with Libra Belle, Remember El, Soho Valencia, Go West U Terror, Im Themightyquinn and Tosti Boy on October 27, 2012, and, quite remarkably it was on October 27 last year when Warwick won all six races at Kellerberrin (with Our Bon Cheval, Weewah, American Colt, Batavia Blackhole, Taroona Bromac and The Bird Dance.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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