By Adam Hamilton
Gary Hall Sr is confident Ohoka Punter will be a major Perth Inter Dominion player later this year.
But for now, it’s all about getting the former star Kiwi pacer over yet another injury setback.
Ohoka Punter joined Hall Sr’s stable last October with a view to last year’s Perth Inter Dominion, but succumbed to an untimely health issue and was forced to the spelling paddock.
Hall Sr nursed him back to peak fitness and Ohoka Punter finally stepped-out for the first time in winning style for the new stable at Gloucester Park on April 7. He then followed with a huge third from a 50m handicap at the same track.
“Those first two runs were huge, but he was a bit disappointing when beaten at the next two runs, including last week,” Hall Sr said. “He still went well, but he didn’t look to hit the line as strongly as we know he can.
“We had him looked right over and found a quarter crack. That explains it.
“He’s too good to try and nurse through it, so we’ve opted to give him a month off and then bring him back with a long build-up towards the Inters. All going well he should be back racing in August.
“I’ve got no doubt, on what he’s shown us so far, he can and will be one of the main hopes in the Inter Dominion if we can get him spot on.”
Another of Hall Sr’s major Perth Inter Dominion players, the pint-sized Chicago Bull, is only a month away from a racetrack return.
“He’s had longer out than our other free-for-allers because he had that nasty problem with his eye where we actually he feared he might loose that eye for a while,” Hall Sr said.
“That’s all behind us now. Everything about him so far this time up suggests he’s going to come back at least as well as he went out.”
And Chicago Bull certainly went out in style with wins in the big Fremantle/WA Cup double early this year.
More immediately, Hall Sr has another two stable big guns Run Oneover and Beaudiene Boaz in the $35,000 Group 3 Members Sprint (1730m) at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“I’d have to lean to Run Oneover on his first-up run last week and the draw (gate three),” he said. “His problem is that ongoing tendency to want to overrace so much. It’s what beat him last week and, if you think back, he choked-down in the Inter Dominion final.
“He’ll be fitter for last week and if he settles well, he should be hard to beat. I’ve go no doubt he can also be a big player in Inter Dominion if he learns to settle better.”
Beaudiene Boaz is causing Hall Sr some headaches.
“We all know how good his best is, but he’s going through this stage – hopefully it’s just a stage – where he is being really coltish and I’m not sure he’s concentrating on his racing as he should. He’s quite hard to control,” he said.
“We’ll know more this week. Gaz (Gary Hall Jr) is back on and although he’s drawn wide (gate eight), I’m hoping we see something closer to the best Beaudiene Boaz.”
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
Driving The Future Of Harness Racing
