Stylish New Zealand-bred pacer Risk, a first acceptor for the TABtouch interdominion championship, will not contest the rich series which gets underway with the opening set of qualifying heats on November 25.
Instead he is being set for the Kersley Pace, the final of which will be run on the opening night of the Inters.
Co-trainers Greg and Skye Bond have a high opinion of Risk, but they have decided to wait another 12 months before the five-year-old contests an interdominion championship series.
“Risk is only an M2-class pacer and he won’t go round in this year’s series,” Greg Bond said. “We will be relying on Our Jimmy Johnstone, Phoenix Warrior, Delightful Offer, Simply Susational and Ima Connoisseur.”
Risk looks a good bet on Friday night’s ten-event program in which he is favourably drawn at barrier two in the first qualifying heat of the Kersley Pace. He should make amends for two seconds and a third in stronger company at his past three starts.
Risk was far from disgraced at his latest appearance, over 2130m last Friday week when he started from the outside (No. 9) on the front line and was restrained to the rear by Ryan Warwick.
Warwick started a three-wide move approaching the bell and Risk sustained a solid burst from eighth with a lap to travel to finish third behind Red Salute and Jambiani.
The Bonds have a good second string in Friday night’s heat, with Burning to be driven by Ryan Bell from the outside barrier in a field of seven runners. Burning is a versatile performer whose recent efforts have been sound. He has raced 53 times for 17 wins and 17 placings.
Perhaps Risk’s chief rival will be Commander Chapel, who impressed at Pinjarra on Monday afternoon when he was eighth at the bell and fifth at the 250m mark before charging home to finish a neck second to the pacemaker Shardons Rocket in an up-tempo 2185m event in which the final quarters whizzed by in 28.8sec., 27.7sec., 28.8sec. and 29.1sec.
Commander Chapel, an all-the-way Gloucester Park winner over Bungalow Bill two starts earlier, will start from barrier six.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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