07 July 2015
By Adam Hamilton
That’s trotting Victorian trotting mare Claudys Princess after she become only the third trotter to “cleansweep” the Vicbred series with a dominant win in the Group 1 4YO Mares’ final at Melton on Friday night.
It’s a huge credit to popular trainer Mick Blackmore and driver Gavin Lang that the mare has been able to be at her peak three years in a row to win the Vicbred finals at two, three and four.
“That’s the one I wanted to do with her… three years running … it’s good effort,” Blackmore said after the win.
Lang said all praise went to the mare and Blackmore. “She’s got so much talent and a great attitude and Mick’s done a fantastic job with her,” he said.
Claudys Princess has raced 27 times for 18 wins, eight placings and $286,508 in earnings.
On Friday, she trotted to the front from gate four, controlled the tempo through a 62.6sec middle half then ripped home in 57.6 and 27.9sec to win by 10m over the luckless Illawong Helios, who was buried three-fence and got clear too late.
The eye-catching run came from Brent Lilley’s improving mare Barefoot Sally, who sustained a long three-wide sprint to be just edged-out of second spot.
Another juvenile star, Im Stately, added the Vicbred 4YO final to his 2YO final win when he worked to the front early and scored by 5m in a 2min1.5sec mile rate.
NICOLE Molander added some Kiwi flavour to Vicbred trotting finals night.
Molander’s speedy and promising three-year-old filly Reina Danzante unleashed a big finishing sprint to easily win her final.
It’s especially exciting given the filly is a daughter of former Rowe Cup winner La Coocaracha, one of the best trotting mares Australia has produced in the modern era.
And Reina Danzante is raced by leviathan trotting owner-breeder Pat Driscoll of Yabba Farms.
Another exciting filly win on the night was David Aiken’s Princess Phoenix, who toyed with her rivals in the 2YO fillies’ final.
She’s raced just five times for three wins and two seconds.
THERE’S plenty of depth in Victoria’s two-year-old trotting ranks.
Princess Phoenix is the pick of the fillies, while there are four or five exciting colts and geldings.
Sundons Courage (Sundon-Truscott Photo) won a stirring battle over the untapped Cruisin Around in the 2YO colts and geldings Vicbred final.
FORMER Kiwi trotter Foray is improving with every run in Australia. The six-year-old, now trained by Ross Sugars, made it three wins from just five Aussie runs when he did all the work and dug deep to win the Noopy Kiosk free-for-all last Friday night. The time was an impressive 1min58.5sec for 1720m.
The eye-catching run came from the regally-bred Lord Liam, a half-brother to former star trotter Let Me Thru, who was beaten a whisker after sustaining a long three and four-wide run from last.
Lord Liam was first-up from a break and Nicole Molander looks set to have a huge campaign with him.
IN the week Gary Hall Sr officially retired Im Themightyquinn, he showed he would still be a key player in the upcoming Perth Inter Dominion series.
Hall Sr’s best chance looks to be with tough rising five-year-old Machtu, who beat a small but strong field in the $35,000 Winter Cup (2536m) at Gloucester Park last Friday night.
His wildcard could be this season’s WA Derby winner Beaudiene Boaz, who will be a young four-year-old when the Inter Dominion is run.
Hall Sr said Beaudiene Boaz, who is currently preparing for the 3YO Breeders Crown series, would “almost certainly” be nominated for the Perth series.
But Machtu is a definite and judging by his strong Winter Cup win he be a worthy contender. “We’ve always had a big opinion of him. Even as a three-year-old he raced tough, like a Grand Circuit horse in the making,” Hall Sr said.
“He missed a chunk of racing with injury so that’s why he’s back now going through these races to get some conditioning and experience against the older horses.”
Machtu ran third in the Pinjarra Cup recently behind WA’s best horse, David Hercules, then turned the tables on him in the Winter Cup.
It must be said Gary Hall Jr’s superb drive and how the raced panned out made the difference. Machtu lobbed in the one-one, followed David Hercules everywhere and just did enough to beat him a head in a very solidly run 1min57.6sec mile rate.
David Hercules had the job of sitting outside the second favourite, buzz mare Libertybelle Midfrew, and had to keep the pressure on her.
The shock of the race came when Libertybelle Midrew punctured alarmingly down the back straight and dropped right out to finish last, almost 50m from the winner.
STAYING in WA and Greg Bond’s exciting two-year-old filly Dodolicious continued the great start to her career with a dominant win in the $100,000 Westbred Classic (2130m).
Dodolicious (Bettors Delight-Slick Chic) worked early, found the front and scored by 16m in a 1min58sec mile rate. She’s raced just six times for four wins and two seconds.
The other Westbred final winners were: Johnny Disco (Jeremes Jet-Dalmore Disco) in the 2YO colts and geldings; Bettor Reward (Bettors Delight-Chemical Romance) in the 3YO colts and geldings and Once Bitten (Four Starzzz Shark-Kotare Ash) in the 3YO fillies.
FORMER classy Kiwi filly Katy Perry only won narrowly, but smashed the clock winning her first run for new trainer Shane Tritton at Albion Park last Friday.
Last season’s Breeders Crown winner fought for the front and found it from Major Coup then maintained a hot tempo for a sizzling 1min53.6sec mile rate over 1660m.
Major Coup challenged strongly in the run home, but failed by a head. Katy Perry is now bound for a clash with Fight For Glory, Linda Lovegrace and others in the Queensland Oaks.
MANLY NRL star Brett Stewart’s fairytale start to harness ownership continues. Stewart was talked into taking a share in Kiwi-bred juvenile Zee Dana by friend and Aussie media personality, Gareth Hall.
Zee Dana, a son of Tintin In America, made it two easy wins from as many starts when he scored at Shepparton last Thursday. Now it’s time for co-trainers Amanda Turnbull and Nathan Jack to decide whether to have a dip at the Breeders Crown with such a lightly-raced youngster, or aim longer term.
VICTORIA harness a new chief steward. Nick Murray, long regarded as a rising stars in stewards’ ranks, was appointed Harness Racing Victoria’s chairman of stewards last Thursday.
Murray has been a HRV steward since 2004 and also boasts a brief eight-month stint across at the thoroughbreds with Racing Victoria in 2009-10.
Story supplied by Harness Racing New Zealand INC
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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