05 November 2020 | Ken Casellas
Punters will face a curious dilemma when determining the prospects of the speedy but enigmatic pacer Thereugo in the Westside Auto Wholesale Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night, a 2130m event in which he is perfectly drawn at barrier No. 1.
He possesses dazzling gate speed and 18 of his 20 wins have been achieved when he has set the pace and he appears certain to burst straight to the front for trainer-reinsman Lindsay Harper. The seven-year-old gelding is sure to be at a short quote, following his performance when he led from barrier nine and finished second to Quick Stride over 2130m last Friday week. But Thereugo will need to lift his rating if he is to succeed this week. He has a losing sequence of 23 and the past 12 occasions he has set the pace he has been unable to go on and win.
Several of his rivals this week have the credentials to win the race. They include the two back-line runners Arma Indie and Quick Stride, Whozideawasthis (barrier eight), Liam Neil (four), Maras Ace Man (five), Roman Aviator (seven) and Dredlock Rockstar (six).
Four-year-old mare Arma Indie, the youngest and least experienced runner in the race, makes strong appeal after she bounced back to her best form last Friday night when she set the pace from barrier two and sprinted over the final 400m in 27.3sec. to win over 2536m in good style from McArdles Gem.
The Mike Reed-trained Arma Indie will start from the inside of the back line and reinsman Mark Reed should be happy to take the trail behind Thereugo before attempting to get into the clear in a concerted bid for victory.
Whozideawasthis is capable of making amends for his wilting fourth behind Rocknroll Whitby last Friday night when he raced three wide before getting to the front after 600m. Quick Stride revealed his sit-sprint capacity two starts ago when he charged home from eighth at the bell to win convincingly from Thereugo, and Liam Neil, Maras Ace Man and Dredlock Rockstar are all racing keenly.
Punters face another ticklish decision when assessing the prospects of 163-race veteran Mister Ardee, who is ideally drawn at barrier one in the 2130m Better Your Bet With TABtouch Pace.
Trained and driven by Madeleine Young, Mister Ardee has an excellent winning chance after he sustained a spirited three-wide burst from eighth in the middle stages to finish third behind Rocknroll Whitby and Sokys Big Bullet last Friday night.
That was a solid effort at his second start after a two-month absence. But he was unplaced at his previous 13 starts and has a losing sequence of 26. Perhaps punters should lean slightly towards Alta Rhett, a handy four-year-old trained in Bunbury by Sarah Wall, as well as Taroona Bromac.
Alta Rhett, to be handled by Nathan Turvey, is favourably drawn at barrier two. He caught the eye when he finished solidly from sixth at the bell to be third behind Quick Stride over 2130m last Friday week.
Taroona Bromac, a four-year-old trained by Greg and Skye Bond, ran a terrific trial for this race when he bounced back to his best form with a dashing victory in fast time at Gloucester Park on Wednesday afternoon.
Taroona Bromac began speedily from the No. 6 barrier and burst to the front after 150m before setting a brisk pace and winning by a half-length from Burning Rubber, rating 1.56.3, with the final three 400m sections being run in 29.7sec., 28.7sec. and 27.7sec.
If he repeats that performance from barrier six on Friday night, he will be very hard to beat.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
Driving The Future Of Harness Racing
