18 July 2022 | Ken Casellas
Cortopassi’s “scary” prediction
Star reinsman Aldo Cortopassi was lavish in his praise of Magnificent Storm after he had driven the brilliant five-year-old to a thrilling victory over evergreen champion Chicago Bull in the $30,000 Call Garrard’s Horse And Hound For All Your Equine Needs Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night, and he issued a chilling warning to the connections of the State’s best pacers, saying: “The best is yet to come.”
Cortopassi said that there were no obvious chinks in Magnificent Storm’s armour and that the New Zealand-bred son of American Ideal was sure to keep improving.
“He has won nearly half a million dollars and the best is yet to come,” he said. “He won’t be at his top for about 12 months, and it will be scary when that happens.
“A lot of people forget that Magnificent Storm was having only his 30TH race start tonight. He is still a baby in his head, and he will have his good days and his bad days. His ability enabled him to win his early races so easily, and now he’s in the deep end against old war horses like Vultan Tin and Chicago Bull.
“Years ago, a 30-start horse wouldn’t be racing Free-For-All horses, but now they are. He has done a fantastic job, and he will probably get better and better racing against these high-quality horses.
“I loved the way he attacked the line tonight. He is such a lovely animal who really wanted to win.”
Magnificent Storm was remarkable value as the $3.60 second fancy, with nine-year-old Chicago Bull the hot $1.75 favourite. Gary Hall jnr sent Chicago Bull straight to the front from the No. 3 barrier, with Cortopassi getting Magnificent Storm into the favourable one-out, one-back position in the first circuit while Vultan Tin went forward to race in the breeze.
Magnificent Storm began a three-wide move with 450m to travel and he finished powerfully to get up in the final couple of strides to beat Chicago Bull by a head, rating 1.58.1 over the 2536m, with the final 800m taking 55.2sec. Bletchley Park ($31) trailed the pacemaker throughout and ran home solidly to finish third.
“It all worked out really well for us to get that good trip,” said Cortopassi. “We were able to sit him up and use his high speed. It is nice to be able to drive him in that manner.”
Magnificent Storm, a credit to his trainer Ray Williams, now has amassed $426,042 in prizemoney from 22 wins and four placings from 30 starts.
Champion trainer Gary Hall snr said that he was quite happy with Chicago Bull’s effort at his fourth appearance after a spell, while Handsandwheels impressed at his first outing for 23 months when he raced in last position in the field of seven before finishing strongly to be a close-up fifth.
Savvy Bromac bows out in style
Bonny mare Savvy Bromac ended her racing career in brilliant style with a dashing all-the-way victory in the 2130m Garrard’s Here On Track Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
The five-year-old mare has been retired to the breeding barn by her owner, Broome businessman Karl Deiley, after a wonderful career of 45 starts for 15 wins, 15 placings and stakes of $307,445.
Savvy Bromac, a $6.10 second fancy from the No. 3 barrier, was sent straight to the front by Chris Lewis and she set a solid pace before dashing over the final 800m in 56.1sec. to beat the $1.30 favourite Angel In White by 2m at a 1.57.2 rate.
Eight-year-old Angel In White began from the No. 1 barrier, but she lacked the speed to hold out the fast-starting Savvy Bromac. Angel In White was held up behind the leader for most of the final lap before getting clear in the closing stages and finishing fast.
“That’s it; this was always going to be Savvy Bromac’s final start,” said trainer Nathan Turvey. “The win got her over $300,000, and she has exceeded all expectations. She retires without ever having to visit the vet. And it’s good for her to go out on top.
“I don’t think that anyone expected Savvy Bromac to go forward and lead. But I instructed Chris to go forward and lead.
“I wouldn’t have thought that she would have performed so well when I first saw her. She was only a little, lean thing.” However, she developed into a well-muscled mare, mainly due to Turvey’s program of jogging her in the heavy sand.
Turvey said that Savvy Bromac ranked with the best pacers he has trained, along with Simba Bromac and Miracle Moose. “She won a group 1 event (the Westral Mares Classic in November 2021 when she beat Born To Boogie and Balcatherine), was Mare of the Year and won more than three hundred grand,” he said.
Deiley, an admirer of Savvy Bromac’s sire Mach Three, bought Savvy Bromac for $30,000 as a two-year-old before she had been broken in. He purchased her mainly for breeding purposes, even if she was unable to race, let alone be a winner.
Savvy Bromac is the final foal out of the Fake Left mare Zante Beach, who earned $124,447 from 16 wins and 27 placings from 84 starts. Savvy Bromac also inherited much of her ability from her great granddam Gemfire, who raced 107 times for 13 wins, 35 placings and $109,916 in prizemoney.
Suvaljko’s plan succeeds
When standing-start specialist Twobob Cracker drew the inside of the 10-metre line in the 2503m Garrard’s Horse And Hound BOTRA Cup at Gloucester Park on Friday night star reinsman Shannon Suvaljko hatched a plan to enjoy a perfect trail behind the polemarker and likely pacemaker Joey James.
The plan succeeded, but not before some anxious moments in the final lap when Twobob Cracker was hemmed in on the pegs behind the frontrunning Joey James, the $3.10 second favourite.
Eventually, Suvaljko was able to ease Twobob Cracker off the inside and into the clear 200m from home. Twobob Cracker then went four wide and was fourth with 15m to travel before he burst to the front in the final stride to gain the verdict in a three-way photo finish, winning by a head from $11 chance Acuto (who took a narrow lead in the final 5m), with Joey James a half-head away in third place.
Finishing a close fourth was the $2.70 favourite Master Yossi, who began speedily from the outside of the 10m line and raced in the breeze outside Joey James. Master Yossi, seemingly quite fresh at his first outing for four months, ruined his chances by racing fiercely.
Twobob Cracker, an Art Major four-year-old, was selected by Hopeland trainer Glenn Elliott at the 2019 APG Perth yearling sale. He was passed in before Elliott bought him for $22,500 the day after the sale, and the gelding is raced by Elliott in partnership with Stephen Wojtowicz, an uncle of Elliott’s partner Grace Inwood.
Twobob Cracker has proved to be a good buy, with his 53 starts producing ten wins and 12 placings for stakes of $97,942 after only a modest start to his career when he was unplaced at his first 14 starts, all as a two-year-old, and breaking through for his initial win at his 19TH start when he scored by a head from Minni Martini at Pinjarra in February 2021.
Twobob Cracker, whose dam Where Dreams Grow earned $103,800 from 12 wins, 12 seconds and two thirds from 62 starts, has a record of his past eight wins being in standing-start events.
Oaks is long-range plan for Dontbesillychilli
Three-year-old filly Dontbesillychilli is no slouch, and she notched her seventh win from 24 starts when Dylan Egerton-Green drove her to a smart all-the-way win in the $20,250 Garrard’s Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
The $1.30 favourite led from the No. 1 barrier, and after a slow lead time of 39sec. and moderate opening quarters of the final mile in 31.8sec. and 30.3sec. she sped over the final 400m sections in 28.5sec. and 27.9sec. on her way to scoring by two lengths from $7 chance Extraordinary Mary, rating 1.59 over the 2130m.
The $150,000 WA Oaks on October 14 is the long-range plan for Dontbesillychilli, according to her Bunbury trainer Sarah Wall. Also on the agenda is likely to be the $100,000 Westbred Classic for fillies on September 9.
Dontbesillychilli is by American sire Western Terror and is out of the former smart mare Justlikechocolate, who earned $188,937 from 13 wins and 19 placings from 48 starts. Dontbesillychilli is a half-sister to the Wall-trained six-year-old Alta Rhett, whose all-the-way win at Gloucester Park the previous Friday took his record to 82 starts for 12 wins and 25 placings for stakes of $148,202.
Dontbesillychilli got his name from the late Mark Forster, a friend of the Wall family and a stable client who enjoyed plenty of success with his first horse, Wesley.
“Mark was a part-owner of many of our horses, and he drew up a list of six names for our Western Terror filly,” said Wall. Sadly, Forster was struck down by cancer and he died at the age of 34 in December 2020.
Wall and her husband Chris, who bred the filly, submitted Forster’s list of names to the RWWA registrar, who accepted the No. 1 choice Dontbesillychilli. “I don’t think there was any reason behind the name,” said Mrs Wall. “I think Mark just liked the sound of it.”
Dontbesillychilli completed a splendid family double, with Mrs Wall’s father Terry Keenan owning and training two-year-old filly Spiritofanangel, who won the opening event at Bunbury’s Donaldson Park early on Friday afternoon. Keenan is well remembered as the breeder, owner and trainer of Sir Jasper who won 14 races on South-West tracks between 2005 and 2013.
Dominus Factum’s flying start
A wide draw at barrier seven proved no impediment for speedy four-year-old Dominus Factum, who began with a sizzling burst to dash to the front after 60 metres in the 2130m Garrard’s Horse And Hound group 3 $30,000 Chandon Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
This great start paved the way for Dominus Factum’s convincing victory which gave the American Ideal gelding five wins from eight starts this season which have taken his record to 41 starts for 15 wins, ten placings and stakes of $125,401.
Dominus Factum, trained and driven by Aiden de Campo, was the $2.10 favourite when he led from barrier one and easily beat Caveman and Shadow Roll the previous Friday. But from his wide draw on Friday night Dominus Factum was overlooked by most punters and was a $19 chance.
Arma Einstein was the $1.30 favourite and was generally expected to set the pace and prove hard to beat after starting from the coveted No. 1 barrier. He led for the first 60 metres before Dominus Factum charged to the front and then was able to relax and cost through the lead time in a slow 38sec.
This was followed by comfortable quarters of 31.3sec. and 30.3sec. before Dominus Factum sprinted over the final 400m sections in 28.3sec. and 27.9sec. to win at a 1.57.7 rate.
Moonlite Drive, a $10 chance, worked in the breeze throughout and fought on gamely to finish second, with Arma Einstein, finishing fast into third place after trailing the leader all the way.
Easy for Heez Our Perseus
Heez Our Perseus, unplaced at his four starts in New Zealand, as a three-year-old in 2018, is proving to be an excellent moneyspinner in Western Australia.
The six-year-old gelding was a hot $1.20 favourite from the No. 2 barrier in the 2130m Garrard’s Horse And Hound Australia And NZ Wide Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night when Maddison Brown gave his supporters no cause for concern by driving him to an effortless victory.
Heez Our Perseus jumped straight to the front and relished his pacemaking role after a slow lead time of 38.1sec. He dashed over the final 800m in 56.6sec. to give his rivals little chance of even getting close to him. He won by two lengths from the $9 second favourite Shadow Roll, who raced in the breeze early before enjoying an ideal trail in the one-out, one-back position. Rupert Of Lincoln ($26) who moved to the breeze in the first lap, fought on doggedly to be third.
Trainer Gary Hall snr said that he had been contemplating selling Heez Our Perseus to race in America on behalf of the gelding’s owners, his wife Karen, Maddison Brown and Glen Moore. “But we have been unable to get the right price,” he said. “We’re not going to give him away, and he should earn more stakemoney in WA.”
Heez Our Perseus has now earned $150,090 from 14 wins and 16 placings from 61 starts. He is by Alta Christiano and is the second foal out of the Elsu mare Sweet Perrier, who raced only three times for unplaced efforts as a two-year-old before being retired to the breeding barn.
Sweet Perrier’s first foal is Sweet N Fast, who was placed at two of his five New Zealand starts before having 39 starts in Western Australia for 12 wins and six placings. He left WA in December 2019 to race in Canada where he has recorded another nine wins.
Beat City shows his class
Few pacers are capable of contesting a spirited and fast lead time and then setting the pace before sprinting home powerfully with final quarters of 28.4sec. and 28.1sec.
That’s exactly what trainer Michael Young’s smart five-year-old Beat City did on his way to scoring a most impressive victory in the 2130m Your One Stop Shop Is At Garrard’s Horse And Hound Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Beat City was the $2.20 favourite from barrier two when he was involved in a hectic early battle for the lead with Bracken Sky ($8.50), Jaspervellabeach ($51) and Typhoon Banner ($2.75).
Jaspervellabeach led by a head soon after the start before being restrained, polemarker Bracken Sky set the pace for the first 450m, with Beat City, driven hard by Gary Hall jnr, challenging strongly, and Typhoon Banner, from out wide at barrier eight, dashing forward early, out three and four wide in a bid for the lead.
Typhoon Banner did not appear likely to get to the front, leaving Dylan Egerton-Green no option but to restrain the talented five-year-old who was able to obtain the one-out and one-back position.
The hectic early battle resulted in a fast lead time of 35.3sec., but Hall, after getting Beat City to the front after 450m, was able to get the gelding to relax and amble through the opening quarter of the final mile in 32.3sec. After a second quarter of 30.5sec. Beat City sprinted over the final 400m sections in 28.4sec. and 28.1sec.
Caveman, a $7.50 chance who raced in the breeze, issued a challenge to Beat City approaching the home turn. But Beat City was not to be denied, and he dashed away from his rivals to win by just over two lengths from Caveman, who was making his farewell appearance in Australia before travelling to America to continue his career which stands at 53 starts for 16 wins, 13 placings and stakes of $156,059.
Young was impressed with Beat City’s splendid performance, saying: “I thought he could be vulnerable and that it wouldn’t suit him being involved in such a fast lead time.
“This was only the second time that we have pushed him off the gate as hard as we can. Gary was worried that Beat City could be crossed by Typhoon Banner, and I told him to make sure that it didn’t happen.
“If Beat City was able to hold out Typhoon Banner, I was confident we could beat him. As it turned out we had the barrier (advantage) and were able to hold up.
“I might be aiming too high, but I wouldn’t mind trying to get Beat City into the Fremantle and WA Pacing Cups in the summer. He might not stack up, but we will give him a chance, and see what happens.”
Beat City, a winner of eight races in Victoria, has thrived under Young’s care in WA where his 27 starts have produced nine wins, ten seconds and two thirds.
Robbie Rocket is a great trier
Robbie Rocket, described by Byford trainer Ron Huston as a versatile pacer, but not overly tough, is an excellent frontrunner, who proved his value as a smart sit-sprinter when he won the www.horseandhound.com.sau Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“He is only small, but he tries his heart out,” said Huston. “Tonight, he had a decent draw (inside of the back line) and had a bit of luck in running.
“He has raced against good horses from day one, horses like Lavra Joe, Mighty Ronaldo and Jumpingjackmac, and as a young horse he ran seconds behind Lavra Joe and Jumpingjackmac, as well as finishing third behind Mighty Ronaldo in the Golden Slipper.
“He was probably just as good as any of them as a two-year-old. But they have gone on, while he has got no better as a three and four-year-old. There is a great crop of four-year-olds this year who will be fighting for places in the fields to contest the rich feature events for four-year-olds late this year.
“Robbie Rocket won’t be one of them. He is just a good, honest Friday night horse. We are realistic of what he can do and what he can’t do.”
Robbie Rocket was the $5.30 second favourite on Friday night when he raced in fifth place, three back on the pegs, while Longreach Bay ($6.50) set the pace. Mitch Miller was able to ease Robbie Rocket off the pegs 300m from home and the gelding went four wide on the home turn and finished strongly to hit the front 45m from the post and win by just over a length from $12 chance Hillview Bondi, who raced in the breeze before taking the lead with 100m to travel.
Robbie Rocket, who rated 1.56.9 over the 2130m journey, was bred and is owned by Tasmanian Patrick O’Boyle, who owned the Follow The Stars gelding’s dam Elite Angel.
Elite Angel was trained by Huston for her first 54 starts for 12 wins, 14 placings and about $125,000 in prizemoney. Robbie Rocket now has earned $95,634 from nine wins and 16 placings from42 starts.
Louie The Lip proves his worth
New Zealand-bred four-year-old Louie The Lip arrived in Western Australia in November 2019 with high expectations. But he had leg problems soon after he joined the stables of Gary Hall snr, and there were grave fears that he would never be able to race.
However, he has finally overcome his problems and he appeared in his sixth start in a race when he contested the 2130m Garrard’s Rio Cobra Sulky Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He was the $3.60 second fancy from barrier two, and after enjoying an ideal passage in the one-out, one-back position with the polemarker and $1.85 favourite Naval Aviator setting a solid pace, he finished strongly to score an emphatic one-length victory over his stablemate and $6 chance Euphoria, who battled on gamely after racing in the breeze.
Louie The Lip made his debut when second in a race at Pinjarra on May 16 this year, and he now has won four races in a row.
The win gave champion reinsman Gary Hall jun his fifth winner for Friday. He won earlier in the night with Beat City after landing a treble at Bunbury in the afternoon with the Justin Prentice-trained trio of Rambo Rabbit, Tricki Miki and Mr Fantastic.
“I don’t know how Louie The Lip has been able to race after he bowed his tendons that badly,” said Hall snr. “He bowed both tendons three times, and I thought he would never stand up and be able to race.
“But he is now pretty sound, and he has got a bit of toughness about him.”
Louie The Lip is by American Ideal and is out of Blistering Belle, a winner at four of her 63 starts and the dam of nine winners, including Elite Belle, Five Card Draw and Ideal Belle.
Elite Belle earned $102,927 from 11 wins and 15 placings from 73 starts, Five Card Draw had 225 starts for 34 wins, 71 placings and stakes of $680,534, and Ideal Belle raced 34 times for seven wins, 13 placings and $204,316.
Five Card Draw won seven races in New Zealand and 17 times in Queensland before going to America in 2016 where he won another ten times. Three of his victories in New Zealand were in group 1 feature events in 2012 — the Cardigan Bay Stakes at Alexandra Park (when he beat Ohoka Punter, Sky Falcon, Rocky Marciano and My Hard Copy), the Sires Stakes series final at Addington, and the Emerald at Cambridge.
Crowd Control set for the Pearl
Highly-promising two-year-old Crowd Control emerged as a leading candidate for the $100,000 Pearl Classic on August 26 when he scored a stylish victory in the $20,250 Garrard’s Service With Integrity Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“He will probably have a week off and then get ready for the Pearl and the $225,000 Westbred Classic (on September 16),” said trainer-reinsman Kim Prentice after Crowd Control, the $1.85 favourite, was not extended in defeating the $2.90 second fancy Soho Confidential.
Star Lavra ($4.20) set an extremely slow pace with a lead time of 40.5sec. and opening quarters of 33.7sec. and 31.5sec. before the final 400m sections whizzed by in 27.8sec. and 27.9sec.
Soho Confidential, who was eased off the pegs and into the breeze 1250m from home, got to the front with 400m to travel before Prentice sent Crowd Control to the lead at the 200m.
Prentice prides himself as a good judge of horseflesh, and he selected Crowd Control at the 2021 APG Perth yearling sale when he was able to purchase him for $18,000 and then syndicated him to a bunch of stable clients.
“I put a lot of time into yearlings, and I love buying yearlings,” he said. “I have had a lot of nice young horses, and Crowd Control is right up there with them. He has high speed and stamina.
“It didn’t bother me how tonight’s race was run. I was content to drive him just how the race unfolded.”
Crowd Control is by American stallion Control The Moment and is out of the Barnett Hanover mare Just Visiting, who won twice (at Bunbury) as a three-year-old in 2015 before being retired with earnings of $10,398 from her two wins and two placings from 25 starts.
Just Visiting is out of Royal Tour, the dam of eight winners, including Truckers Ruffnut (53 starts for 20 wins, 14 placings and $249,770), Tuxedo Tour (70 starts for 15 wins, 21 placings and $194,596), American Bullitt (67 starts for eight wins, 19 placings and $81,690) and Give Us A Wave (35 starts for ten wins, 12 placings and $134,598).
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Driving The Future Of Harness Racing
