31 March 2022 | Ken Casellas
Lewis aiming for ninth Empress Stakes
Brilliant young driver Emily Suvaljko is in isolation after a positive coronavirus test, forcing her to forego several drives at Gloucester Park on Friday night, giving champion reinsman Chris Lewis a wonderful opportunity to win the $50,000 Cowden Ltd Empress Stakes for a record ninth time.
Suvaljko is the No. 1 driver for trainer Nathan Turvey, she is Savvy Bromac’s regular driver, and she has driven the talented mare for six wins.
Turvey has engaged Lewis to handle Savvy Bromac, who is handily drawn at barrier No. 3 on the front line in the group two Empress Stakes over 2536m. Lewis has driven Savvy Bromac three times, for an all-the-way win over 2130m at Gloucester Park in October 2020, for a strong finishing third behind Sheez Our Hope at Gloucester Park in February and for an unlucky fourth behind Diego in the 2692m Pinjarra Cup three starts ago.
Lewis has won the Empress Stakes with Candy Nacray (1988), Armbro Lucy (1992), Meggie Dear (2001), Classical Mover (2002), Shes Royalty (2007), Ima Spicey Lombo (2011) and Sensational Gabby (2014 and 2015).
Savvy Bromac has started off the back line at her past three outings and has not had much luck, having raced four back on the pegs and being held up for a clear run when fourth in the Pinjarra Cup, racing three back on the pegs before finishing strongly to be a very close third behind Purest Silk and Miss Mucho in the Golden Girls Mile (1684m) at Pinjarra, and then settling last in the 2569m Bunbury Cup last Sunday before racing five back on the pegs at the rear and then being badly hampered for room when an unlucky sixth behind Mighty Ronaldo.
Savvy Bromac possesses good gate speed, and Lewis will keep his options open before determining his tactics after the mobile barrier releases the twelve mares on their way on Friday night.
Two of Savvy Bromac’s most serious rivals, Bettor Get It On (Gary Hall jnr) and Miss Mucho (Ryan Warwick) have drawn inside her at barriers one and two, respectively.
Both are in good form, with the Justin Prentice-trained Bettor Get It On settling at the rear before sustaining a spirited three-wide burst from the 1000m to the 400m mark before finishing a sound third behind Eighteen Carat and Booraa over 2130m last Friday night.
Prentice is seeking his fourth win as a trainer in the Empress Stakes — after scoring with Major Reality in 2016, The Parade in 2017 and Pick My Pocket in 2020. Hall has won the Empress Stakes with Aussie Made Lombo in 2013 and The Parade.
Hall gives Bettor Get It On an excellent each-way chance, saying: “She can grow a leg in front, and if we can happen to hold the lead, she will be hard to beat.”
Miss Mucho, to be handled by star reinsman Ryan Warwick for leading trainers Greg and Skye Bond, is racing with admirable enthusiasm and looks set to fight out the finish. She raced wide early and then without cover when a neck second to Purest Silk in the Golden Girls Mile at Pinjarra.
That followed wins over 2130m at Gloucester Park at her two previous outings — when she finished powerfully to beat Livy Jay, and when she raced wide early before setting the pace and beating Vivere Damore by four lengths. Warwick and the Bonds combined to win the 2021 Empress Stakes with Wainui Creek. Warwick also drove Asian Paradise to victory in this event in 2005.
The prospects of Golden Girls Mile winner Purest Silk faded when she drew the outside barrier (No. 9) on the front line. She will be driven by Colin Brown, who won the 2004 Empress Stakes with the brilliant Sand Pebbles.
Shane Tognolini’s veteran mare Angel In White is in sound form, but reinsman Shannon Suvaljko is concerned at her ability to be dangerous over 2536m.
Whataretheodds is ready for action
A narrow victory at a modest rate of 2.2.1 at Bridgetown followed by a second in a three-horse Byford trial a week later have given Baskerville trainer Ryan Bell good reason to feel optimistic about the prospects of Whataretheodds when he contests the Titanium Man Pace for three-year-olds at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Whataretheodds, who will be driven by Michael Grantham from the No. 4 barrier, has posed a few problems for Bell since resuming work after a beneficial spell following an excellent campaign as a two-year-old.
“I have made no secret that I’ve had a troubled preparation with him,” said Bell. “I don’t think that we’re one hundred per cent there yet, but I think he is good enough to win. The filly (Wonderful To Fly) will be the hardest to beat.
“The 2536m journey won’t worry Whataretheodds at all; it will be in his favour. We are finally stepping forward with him. Two months ago, we were struggling, just with a few niggling soundness issues. He was going through a growth change, and this was upsetting him and giving him some aches and pains.
“We just took our time and now we seem to be on the right track. His trial at Byford on Sunday indicated that we can press on. The trial was run in windy conditions and he followed the Gary Hall senior’s Free-For-Aller Texas Tiger, and they went 1.56.7, with Whataretheodds finishing at Texas Tiger’s wheel. He has come through the trial extremely well and I’m looking upwards, hopefully. We will know more by Friday.”
Whataretheodds trailed the pacemaker Texas Tiger in the 2150m trial, and he fought on solidly, with the final quarters being run in 28.8sec. and 28.2sec.
The previous Sunday Whataretheodds, racing first-up for five weeks — after he had finished a head second to Soho Santorini over 2130m at Gloucester Park on February 15 at his first appearance after a seven-month absence — contested a 2190m event at Bridgetown.
He set a modest pace before sprinting over the final two 400m sections in 28.9sec. and 26.9sec. and holding on to win by a neck from Sport Sport Sport, rating 2.2.1.
“The win didn’t look impressive, but he’s that type of horse who doesn’t win by much.”
Whataretheodds was a smart two-year-old last year when he raced ten times for four wins and four seconds. Two of his second placings were behind Rock On Top in the Westbred Classic for two-year-old colts and geldings and behind Tricky Miki in the Golden Slipper.
In what should be a good betting race on Friday night Wonderful To Fly and High Price loom large as strong winning chances. Wonderful To Fly, the only filly in the race and the winner of eleven races, will start from the outside barrier (No. 9), while the comparatively inexperienced but talented High Price is favourably drawn at barrier two.
“I’m racing Wonderful To Fly against the colts and geldings because she needs the run as part of her preparation for the Gold Bullion on April 22,” said part-owner and trainer-reinsman Shane Young.
“The distance this week won’t bother her. We will probably be sitting and hoping for a bit of luck. Nothing is easy; a lot will depend on how the race is run. It could be single file, and I don’t want to be the one in the breeze, if possible. She can’t do that every week because she will get sick of it. Hopefully, I can drive her for her speed (late) and see what happens.”
High Price, prepared by Gary Hall snr, has raced five times for one win and two placings. He warmed up for Friday night’s assignment in good style when he ran home boldly from three back on the pegs to finish second to Infinite Sign, with final quarters of 27.7sec. and 29.5sec.
“He went good at Pinjarra and is a work in progress,” said reinsman Gary Hall jnr. “However, it is hard to suggest he can beat Wonderful To Fly. But I’ll be trying to lead and make every post a winner.”
Last-start winner Alcopony and other smart youngsters in Seven No Trumps, Hoppys Way and Rock On Top cannot be left out of consideration, and they should combine to make the event extremely competitive.
Suvaljko keen to end on a high
Shannon Suvaljko, who has landed 47 winners in the first three months of the season and heads the drivers’ premiership table from Chris Lewis (39 wins) and Gary Hall jnr (37), has eight drives at Gloucester Park on Friday night and he declares that Pocketful Of Opals is his brightest winning hope.
Pocketful Of Opals will start from barrier four in a field of five in the final event, the Bridge Bar Open Before Every AFL home game, and Suvaljko is planning to use the two-year-old filly’s dazzling gate speed in a bid for an all-the-way victory.
Pocketful Of Opals, who is trained in Collie by Bianca Ashcroft, gave harness racing fans a taste of her ability when she burst straight to the front from barrier five and went on to score an easy win by two and a half lengths over Candy Apple at Gloucester Park on Tuesday of last week.
She settled beautifully after her fast start to amble through the opening quarters of the final mile in 32.6sec., 33.1sec. and 30.4sec. before dashing over the final 400m in 27.9sec.
“She has blistering gate speed and I was really happy with the way she began in that race,” said Suvaljko. “I don’t know for sure whether she will cross to the front this week, but she will give them some curry. She should be hard to beat.”
The major stumbling block for Pocketful Of Opals is certain to be debutant Indomitable Symbol, who is trained by Greg and Skye Bond and will be driven by Ryan Warwick from barrier three.
Indomitable Symbol, a filly by Follow The Stars, scored a runaway victory in a 1750m trial at Byford last Sunday week when she settled down in fourth and last position in an Indian file affair. Warwick eased her off the pegs about 800m from home and she dashed to the front 200m later and raced right away from her rivals to win by nine lengths from Miss Willoughby.
After the opening quarters of the trial were covered in very slow times of 33.8sec. and 31.3sec. the third 400m section took 30.6sec. before Indomitable Symbol sped over the final quarter in 28.8sec.
The polemarker in Friday night’s event is the Paula Petricevich-trained Candy Apple, who will be driven by Gary Hall jnr. Candy Apple trailed Pocketful Of Opals when a well-beaten second to that filly at her latest start. “She should hang on to Pocketful Of Opals’ coat tails and run into the money,” said Hall.
Hall nominated the Justin Prentice-trained gelding Know When To Run as his best winning prospect, saying: “It looks a good race for him, and he should lead and win.”
Know When To Run, who will start from the No. 2 barrier in the 2536m Vintage Cider Pace, had a tough run in the breeze when a fighting last-start second to Lawrence last Friday week. A fortnight earlier he set the pace and scored an easy victory over Harley Zest in the group 3 The Clarke final.
Considerable interest will surround Hall’s drive Armed Reactor in the 2130m Classic Legendary Broking Pace in which the Michael Young-trained gelding will start from the outside barrier at No. 9.
Armed Reactor is an enigmatic and erratic New Zealand-bred seven-year-old who has raced only 13 times for two wins and two placings. “It’s a winnable race if he is on his game,” was Hall’s cryptic comment.
Armed Reactor was a $1.50 favourite at Gloucester Park on Tuesday of last week when he broke into a gallop moments after the start and lost about 60 metres. He went forward, three wide, 650m from home and moved to third at the 400m mark before galloping on the home turn and dropping back to finish last behind Make It Happen.
A week earlier, at his first start for four months Armed Reactor raced wide early and then in the breeze before bursting to the front 500m from home and winning by six lengths from All Black Rain, covering the final 800m in 57.3sec. and rating 1.56.9 over 2130m.
However, he was subsequently disqualified when it was discovered that he was ineligible for that event.
Wheeler out to deliver the goods
Collie reinsman Trent Wheeler will be out to maintain his unbeaten record in the sulky behind Sports Package when he drives the mare in the 2130m Stand Out Broking Services Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Wheeler was called into action by trainer Nathan Turvey after the stable’s No. 1 driver Emily Suvaljko became unavailable after returning a positive test to coronavirus.
Wheeler has driven Sports Package once in the five-year-old mare’s 31-start career. That was when Sports Package set the pace and won a 2265m event at Albany in January 2020.
Sports Package impressed at Gloucester Park on Tuesday night when a late replacement driver Shane Young filled in for Suvaljko and drove the mare to a convincing all-the-way win by two and a half lengths from Valentines Brook, rating 1.58.5 over 2536m, with final quarters of 28.6sec. and 28.5sec.
This was a welcome return to form by Sports Package, who ended a 22-month drought and a losing sequence of 15. She will start from the No. 4 barrier on Friday night, with her chief rival Space Junk more favourably drawn at barrier three and likely to be a short-priced favourite.
Space Junk, trained at Pinjarra by Frank Vanmaris, will be driven for the first time by Gary Hall jnr. The eight-year-old makes strong appeal. He is sure to appreciate a considerable drop in class after competing against the likes of Gambit, Double Up, To Fast To Serious, Hampton Banner, Vespa, Heez Our Perseus, Lawrence and Know When To Run in recent starts. He has good gate speed and Hall is likely to make a bold bid to get to an early lead.
Ryan Warwick, who landed a winning treble with Give Us A Wave, Unconditional and Ima Rockabilly Rebel at Gloucester Park on Tuesday evening, will drive several good each-way chances on Friday night, with the best winning prospect likely to be Booraa, who will start from the No. 1 barrier in the 2130m Bridge Bar Open This Sunday Pace.
Booraa, prepared by Greg and Skye Bond, raced in stronger company last Friday night when she enjoyed an ideal passage, one-out and one-back, before fighting on to finish third behind Sheez Our Hope and Vivere Damore. She gave a powerful performance a week earlier when she surged home out three wide, from ninth at the bell to finish second to Eighteen Carat over 2130m.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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