06 December 2021 | Ken Casellas
Hurricane Harley bounces back
Classy Victorian-bred five-year-old Hurricane Harley bounced back to his best form with a dashing all-the-way victory in the $30,000 Better Your Bet With TABtouch Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
The ease in which he beat Minstrel and Wildwest showed that his fading last in a field of ten a fortnight earlier was just an aberration, and that he is firmly on track to play a significant role in the $300,000 Fremantle Cup on December 21 and the $450,000 WA Pacing Cup on February 4.
Driven fine style by Maddison Brown, Hurricane Harley, the second favourite at $4.10, began from barrier No. 3 and dashed to the front soon after the start, and after opening quarters of 30.3sec. and 29.6sec. he sprinted over the final 400m sections in 28.1sec. and 27.7sec. score by a length from $6.50 chance Minstrel, who fought on grandly after working hard in the breeze. He rated 1.57.3 over the 2536m.
Wildwest, the $3.20 favourite, was hopelessly blocked for a run after trailing the pacemaker throughout.
Trainer Just Prentice admitted that he was pleasantly surprised that Hurricane Harley mustered sufficient gate speed to dash to the front from the outset. “I wasn’t confident that he would,” he said. “But once he did, he was going to be hard to beat. I was really happy with his gate speed, like he showed in Melbourne.”
Prentice said that he was initially disappointed at the way Hurricane Harley wilted to finish last at his previous outing, a fortnight earlier. “But then when you find that he had done that before in Melbourne (fading after racing without cover) I was not so disappointed, even though I would have preferred that he had performed better.”
Brown, who was driving Hurricane Harley for the first time, said that the horse felt really good. “I was surprised he was able to get to the front so easily,” she said. “He is not that quick off the arm, but he just musters really well.
“I knew that Wildwest was on our back, so I didn’t attempt to dash away. However, Harley had other ideas. He got more keen as the race went on, but I wanted to make sure I didn’t let Wildwest out.
“Hurricane Harley knocked off a bit approaching the line, so just turned my stick and made sure he still had a bit left.”
Hurricane Harley, who has earned $545,660 from 24 wins and six placings from 45 starts, will contest the $50,000 City of Perth Cup next Friday night, provided he pulls up in good shape after his win on Friday night.
Prentice’s other runner in Friday night’s event, Major Martini finished eighth. He raced without cover in the first lap before enjoying the one-out, one-back trail. He began a three-wide burst approaching the home turn, and just battled on gamely.
“On face value you would probably say he was a bit disappointing,” said Prentice. “It was such a big step up in class, and that’s hard for any horse, let alone a horse who has had 18 months away from the racetrack. We’re probably a bit too harsh on him.
“The big Cups are in the back of your mind. But what is more important is to have a horse for he future without busting his guts trying to get in those big races.”
Derby plans for Youre So Fine
Highly promising colt Youre So Fine will soon be given a spell before champion trainer Gary Hall snr prepares him for the WA Derby next May.
Youre So Fine, the $1.20 favourite, began from the outside barrier in the field of five in the 2130m Retravision Pace for two-year-olds at Gloucester Park on Friday night and Gary Hall jnr was content to keep him at the rear while Battlescard ($7.50) set the pace.
Hall eased Youre So Fine off the pegs approaching the bell and the Always B Miki colt sustained a solid burst to win by just under a length from $7 chance Paul Edward, who finished fast to be second, a nose ahead of Battlescard. The final quarters were run in 28sec. and 28.4sec. and the winner rated 1.58.6.
“I haven’t had many better two-year-olds,” said Hall snr. “He is a bit lazy and has still got to learn a bit more about how to race. He might have one more run before going to the paddock. He is a Derby hope, absolutely.
“Earlier this year I was in New Zealand, watching races and looking at a couple of two-year-olds, and Glen Moore said ‘that horse there looks all right.’
“I said he is, but you won’t be able to buy him (Youre So Fine). Then he came out and won a group 2 race at Invercargill when he beat Mark Purdon’s really good two-year-old (Franco Indie). He came from fifth at the 500m and won by two lengths at a 1.56.7 rate over 2200m.
“So, we bought him after that when we paid a good bit of money for him. We went to watch the Jewels (the group 1 1609m Emerald). He was three wide for the final 800m and Akuta won by ten lengths. He ran fifth but was beaten about only a neck for second.”
Youre So Fine, who has had four starts in WA for two wins and two placings, is the seventh foal out of the unraced Falcon Seelster mare Syriana, whose first foal Im Meticulous raced 39 times for ten wins, seven placings and $109,067 in stakes.
New program suits Al Guerrero
“A new work program is paying off,” said part-owner and trainer Kyle Anderson after WA-bred four-year-old Al Guerrero gave a spirited frontrunning display to score an easy victory in the 2130m Nova 93.7 Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Al Guerrero, the $4.60 second favourite from barrier three, burst to the front after 300m and set a brisk pace with quarters of 29.8sec., 29.4sec., 27.9sec. and 28.5sec. to win by 8m from $11 chance Manning, who finished fast from sixth on the pegs at the bell.
“This was his quickest mile rate (1.54.7) and he seemed to do it with a bit up his sleeve,” said Anderson. “He’s now on a pretty tough mark. It was the sort of run that you start to look at the bigger races, and you cross your fingers that he gets a start and a good barrier.
“Al Guerrero had a brief freshen-up about eight weeks ago, and after that I started working him in a heavy jog cart in the heavy sand. Now, he definitely feels stronger.
“I’m using a fire break down the road from where I’m stabled at Pinjarra for his work in the heavy sand. I used to work for Nathan Turvey, who loves working his horses in the heavy sand. All Guerrero is a stallion, and this new work has resulted in a change of attitude
“His starting to act like he’s the king around the place. I still hopple him a bit with the focus on running a fast last quarter.”
Al Guerrero is a noted frontrunner and all his 14 wins from 53 starts have been when he has set the pace. “His past two unplaced runs were good from awkward barriers,” said Anderson. “He is not a sit and kick horse, and tonight he made the most of a good barrier.”
Al Guerrero was driven with aplomb by Kyle Harper, with Anderson saying that the combination of Al Guerrero and Harper was a match made in heaven.
Ferguson seizes the initiative
Micheal Ferguson admires Rockaball’s sit-sprinting ability, but he made a snap decision to change his driving tactics in the 2130m Choices Flooring Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night when the early pace was dreadfully slow.
From barrier No. 7, Ferguson restrained Rockaball, the $5.50 second favourite, back to last in the field of twelve. But when Joe With The Flow ($6.50) dawdled through the lead time in 38.8sec. Ferguson dashed Rockaball forward with a sharp three-wide burst 600m after the start.
Rockaball issued a challenge for the lead 150m later, but when Joe With The Flow (Lindsay Harper) resisted, Ferguson was quite content rate Rockaball in the breeze.
Rockaball got on terms with Joe With The Flow 250m from home and he maintained a slight advantage up the home straight to win by a neck from the pacemaker, with the $1.45 favourite Rupert Of Lincoln rattling home to be third after he had trailed the leader and did not get clear until 220m from home.
“I expected a fast lead time,” explained Ferguson. “But when there was such a slow lead time, I decided to go forward to get Rockaball up on the speed. It didn’t bother me that the leader didn’t hand up.
“I think Rockaball had a little bit left in the tank at the finish. When Rupert Of Lincoln was coming late, Rockaball was off and gone again. I expected him to win like that in this grade. Definitely, as he goes up into higher grades, racing three back on the pegs, he will be dangerous.”
Rockaball, a winner of two races in New Zealand, has performed in fine style in WA for his part-owner and trainer Caris Hamilton-Smith, with his 25 starts in the State producing eight wins and four placings.
Leosabi exceeds all expectations
Leosabi, a winner of three races in Victoria, maintained his outstanding form for the indomitable partnership of trainer Nathan Turvey and driver Emily Suvaljko when he finished powerfully from seventh at the bell to win the 2130m Specialised Equipment Funding Solutions Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
This was his seventh win from 14 starts in Western Australia and improved his record to 42 starts for ten wins, 17 placings and stakes of $78,771.
“He is a lovely horse around the stable, and he has exceeded all expectations” said Turvey. “He is a versatile horse and things worked out nicely tonight.”
Leosabi started from the outside of the back line and was the $3 favourite ahead of Typhoon Banner ($4) and Alice Kay ($4.40) who filled the minor placings.
Thereugo ($7) began with his usual alacrity from the No. 5 barrier, and he set the pace, with Alice Kay enjoying an ideal passage, one-out and one-back, and Typhoon Banner in last position.
Alice Kay was flushed out approaching the bell, and her three-wide run was followed by Leosabi and Typhoon Banner, with Leosabi getting the front 50m from the post and scoring by a neck from the strong finishing Typhoon Banner.
Leosabi, a four-year-old by Art Major, is out of the Courage Under Fire mare Glenferrie Alexis, who raced 65 times for 19 wins (six in New Zealand and 13 in Victoria) and ten placings for earnings of $288,323.
This win gave Turvey his 50TH city training success for the season and his 77TH on all tracks. Suvaljko maintained her outstanding form by driving the winner of the first three events at Gloucester Park on Saturday night. She was successful with Sonic Suzy ($1.90), Burghley Shard ($6.50) and Hesacharmer ($9) to take her season’s tally to 165.
Three Rumours turns the tables
Consistent filly Three Rumours, who was convincingly beaten by Sahara Storm a fortnight earlier, turned the tables on her rival in emphatic fashion in the 2130m Bringing Home The Bacon Pace for three-year-old fillies at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
The New Zealand-bred Three Rumours, trained in Busselton by Barry Howlett and driven with great confidence by Chris Lewis, was second fancy at $4.30, and she gave her supporters little cause for concern when she set the pace and sprinted over the final 800m in 56.3sec. to win by five and a half lengths from the $2.45 favourite Sahara Storm.
Three Rumours, who has done all her racing in Western Australia, has had ten starts for three wins, five seconds and a third placing for stakes of $32,554.
She is by Mach Three and is the third foal out of the unraced Bettors Delight mare Boom Time Baby, whose dam This Time Franco was a smart performer, earning $249,151 from ten wins and 11 placings from 36 starts.
As a two and three-year-old in New Zealand in the early 1990s This Time Franco won one group 1 classic event and two group 2 features.
The Ideal Touch does it tough
Rangy American Ideal four-year-old The Ideal Touch revealed admirable strength when he raced without cover before winning the 2130m Sky Racing Pace in fine style at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He was the $1.90 favourite from barrier five and was kept honest in the breeze by the pacemaker and $5.50 third fancy Baltic Ace, who ran a solid lead time of 36.6sec., followed by quarters of 29.7sec., 28sec. and 28.5sec.
Gary Hall jnr dashed The Ideal Touch to the front 250m from the post and the gelding went on to win by a half-length from his stablemate and $3.70 second favourite Heez Our Perseus, who ran home strongly after enjoying the one-out, one-back trail. The winner rated 1.55 and took his record to 19 starts for eight wins and five placings and stakes of $74,595.
He won once from four starts in New Zealand where his final appearance was in the group 1 Two-Year-Old Emerald at Addington in June 2019 when he finished fourth.
“The Ideal Touch is a big horse who has had leg problems,” said trainer Gary Hall snr. “They have cleared up and he’s going well. He ran a reasonable time tonight and did it hard.”
The Ideal Touch is the fourth foal out of the Mach Three mare Touch Of Rose, a winner at four of her 43 starts and $69,756 in prizemoney.
Withoutthetuh’s winning formula
Former Victorian pacer Withoutthetuh has generally been regarded as a smart frontrunner. But in recent times he has discovered a winning formula in standing-start events — as a sit-sprinter.
He was a $17.70 chance from barrier five on the front line in the Simmonds Steel Handicap over 2096m at Gloucester Park on Friday night when Michael Grantham quickly manoeuvred him into second place behind the noted frontrunner Gee Smith ($2.90).
Grantham patiently bided his time until he eased Withoutthetuh off the pegs about 300m from home, and the four-year-old sprinted fast to burst to the front and go on and win from $3.80 second fancy Glenledi Chief, who was fifth in the one-out, one-back position at the bell before finishing determinedly. Gee Smith held on for third, with the $2.80 favourite finishing fifth after galloping at the start.
This win was almost a carbon copy of Withoutthetuh’s previous appearance in a 2096m stand four starts earlier, when he trailed the pacemaker Nearis Green and finished strongly (on the inside) to snatch a nose victory from that pacer.
Withoutthetuh, a winner at two of his six Victorian starts, has been an excellent performer for Coolup trainer Michael Brennan, with his 31 WA starts producing ten wins and 12 placings.
By Courage Under Fire, Withoutthetuh is out of Always Lacking, who managed four wins from 49 starts.
Queen Shenandoah ends losing run of 22
New Zealand-bred mare Queen Shenandoah has been a remarkably consistent pacer for eight-time WA premier trainer Ross Olivieri, and she broke through for a long overdue win at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
She was a $6.90 chance when she stormed home to win the 2130m Channel 7 Pace from the $1.70 favourite Balcatherine. This ended a losing sequence of 22 and improved her record to 87 starts for 15 wins, 30 placings and $250,855 in prizemoney.
In Western Australia Queen Shenandoah has had 56 starts for seven wins and 18 placings. She has finished outside the top five in only eleven of those 56 starts.
“She has been unlucky in the big races for mares, drawing badly and getting bad runs and still running right up behind them,” said Olivieri. “If she was a boxer, she would be a counter puncher; she has been wonderfully consistent.
“I thought she would go close tonight if Balcatherine got into a bit of a war with Vivere Damore. Shannon (Suvaljko) convinced me that Queen Shenandoah was a really big chance.”
As expected, the polemarker and $3.60 second fancy Vivere Damore was seen in the role of pacemaker, with the hard-pulling Alta Cinderella in the breeze and Balcatherine settling down in eighth position in the field of nine.
Queen Shenandoah was racing in sixth position, three back on the pegs, when Gary Hall jnr sent Balcatherine forward, three wide, 900m after the start. Balcatherine raced in the breeze until she forged to the front with 450m to travel. She led by a length on the home turn but was unable to hold off the late charge from Queen Shenandoah, who got off the pegs 480m from home and sustained a powerful burst to hit the front in the final 30m.
Alta Cinderella did a good job to finish third, with Vivere Damore fading to fourth.
Another roughie for Young
There were discussions during the week among some of the nine owners of Has No Fear whether to sell the five-year-old mare, but no decision was reached.
Talented trainer-driver Jocelyn Young is one of the shareholders, and her offer last Monday to buy out her partners is still up in the air.
“Has No Fear is pretty special to me,” said Young after she had driven the mare, a $49.20 outsider, to a surprise victory in the 2130m Catalano Truck And Equipment Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night. This followed Young’s shock victory a week earlier when she drove $102.60 chance Disco Under Fire to victory over the favourite Rock Me Over.
“I have a share in Has No Fear and I tried to buy her on Monday,” said Young. “There was talk of selling her, so I made an offer, but I haven’t heard back. I am still keen to buy her.”
Has No Fear started from the outside of the back line on Friday night and Young quickly angled her across to the inside while the $2.60 favourite Blue Blazer was setting a fast pace with a slick lead time of 35.8sec. followed by quick quarters.
Has No Fear raced in seventh position, five back on the pegs. She was eighth at the bell and Young decided not to take advantage of a gap and get Has No Fear into the clear in the back straight. Instead, she persisted with the pegs passage — and her bold decision paid dividends as she was able to get Has No Fear off the pegs about 120m from home.
Has No Fear then sprinted strongly to take the lead at the 50m mark on her way to winning by just over two lengths from Leap Of Faith and Blue Blazer.
“I was very tempted to come off the pegs in the back straight,” Young admitted. “But I could see Micky G (Michael Grantham) who was ahead of me with Whatabro was looking to get off the pegs. So, I decided to stay where I was, and a few ahead of Whatabro came off the pegs.
“I then decided to keep on the inside and pray. She wasn’t super strong during the race, but I was really happy with the way she hit the line.”
Has No Fear’s win ended a losing sequence of 21, with her previous success being just over 14 months earlier. The WA-bred mare now boasts a splendid record of 69 starts for 11 wins, 19 placings and stakes of $273,020.
Has No Fear, by American sire Western Terror, was an outstanding juvenile who won the Sales Classic and the group 1 WA Oaks in early 2019, and since then she has been placed in four group feature events.
She finished third behind Millwood Molly and Balcatherine in the group 3 Johnson final in April 2020, second to Typhoon Tiff in the group 3 Schrader final in August 2020, third behind Balcatherine in the group 1 Mares Classic in November 2020, and second to Wainui Creek in the group 2 Empress Stakes last March.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
Driving The Future Of Harness Racing
