Druids Say Go extended her winning sequence to six in the second round heats of the PGR Oaks at Perry Barr. Her winning time was 21 spots slower than her first round win but with a going allowance factored in, her calculated 27.80 was an improvement of nine spots. Make a note too though of Queen Joni with a 28.24 (-30) run. Rab McNair promised that she and King Memphis (see below) would both improve from their first round runs in their respective competitions. In her second middle distance race since June, Joni found a calculated 29 spots in a week. That’s seven in a row and 16 of her last 17. There was also a FOY for sprinter Rioja Oisin (15.81).
King Memphis maintained his unbeaten run and found two lengths on his own 491m track record at Central Park when winning the fastest semi-final of the PGR Kent Derby in 28.57. El Tornillo was also inside the old clock with a 28.66 run. So how much faster are times since the new traps were installed? We can take a line through regular A1 winner Lostrigg Joel, who won in 29.06 on Tuesday. Back in the spring when he was on form winning four of seven races including opens and top heats, his best two runs were 29.44 and 29.54. Would 40 spots quicker seem reasonable? The course record over the old 480 metres was 28.50.
Unbeaten in her last five over course and distance, New Destiny showed a battling aspect of her character to give a start and beating to Aayamza Sydney in the Champion Stakes semi-finals at Romford. A mention too for Brindle Bully’s five-timer and the quickest 400 of the week by far, 23.61. He may be in the shadow of brother March On Freddie and it can only be a matter of time before he joins him in Cat One company.
The gold typeface continued at Sheffield on Sunday where Wicky Ned overcame some early crowding to continue his unbeaten run in the Bresbet Steel City Cup semi-finals. That is nine wins in 12 races to date for Jimmy Fenwick’s brindle and they have come in four different colour jackets. He has the three fastest times over course and distance this year and will start favourite for a final that can earn him a £21,500 first prize.
While on the same afternoon, Romeo Command added a £3,000 confined British bred final at Towcester. His record at Towcester has extended to 20 races: 14 wins, five seconds. His UK career record shows he has reached eight Cat One finals and has 30 wins and nine seconds from 46 races, giving a 65% strike rate.
Of course, King Memphis’ record wasn’t the only one to go this weekend. Until 12.21pm on Sunday, Cassidy was the Valley 460m record holder with a 27.96 run. At that point – plus 27.94 seconds – he was usurped by Steve Howard’s blue, Tracker Man. The full brother to Kildare (aka Mr Chelm) has a 28.13 on his card at Shelbourne Park and has now won four times from six races in Wales.
There were two outstanding runs at Nottingham on Monday. Over six bends, the Valley record holder Dubai Kid produced a 41.46 for Craig Marston, the fourth fastest run of the year. But over the sprint, there was an even more impressive performance from Lynn Cook’s Kylenoe Bob. After his last race we questioned whether anyone could ever imagine that the dog with nine months worth of exposed form could record the fastest 305m run of the year, 17.52. So it wasn’t such a shock when he did it again on Monday. A mention too for Sambar Kian’s 29.70 win on Friday.
Hove and Newcastle both staged opens on Thursday and each had worthy selections over different distances. At Hove, Droopys Rosie was the quickest of the night over four bends with a new PB of 29.14. But given there were five stayers races on the night, and Harlequin Beauty had to beat Alright Gordy to win the quickest of them, Seamus Cahill’s black gets the nod. That’s three in a row and five from ten since leaving Kerry. A mention too for Ballymac Kinga following a 29.04 A1 win at the weekend.
From the South to the North East coast and a decent win for another ‘Dowling bred’, Ballymac Camilla, over Newecastle’s six bends. The time was a little slower than might have been expected though so we’ve selected the prolific four bend winner, also hailing from the Kingdom of Kerry, Wraysbury Katie who clocked 28.45 (PB 28.32). Paul Rutherford’s brindle has been in the frame for more than half of her 35 outings, with nine wins and nine seconds and a 26% strike rate.
When Eze (2/1), Droopys Suprstar (5/2), Ballinabola Bill (3/1), Southfield Duke (10/3) and Coppice Warrior all lined up for a Swindon 470m open on Thursday, it was always going to be a Performance of the Week decider. But who would prevail? The answer was Kevin Hutton’s Ballinabola Jim who avoided the aggro on the rails at the first bend and would eventually cross the line in the quickest run of the week, 28.19.
The Yarmouth shout was between two Ian Greaves bred, John Mullins trained ‘Swift’ A1 winners. Swift Carlo clocked the fastest time on Monday night (27.80), Swift Unkind was 10 spots slower but on slower going and in tougher grade company. Not bad for a dog who recorded his best ever time (27.67) as a veteran and who has now been to traps on 126 occasions in the last three years. A mention too for Maori Man who saw off an A2 field in 27.80 on Sunday.
Alberta Jamie is a couple of months older than his Yarmouth counterpart though with a few less miles on the clock (82 outings plus a handful in Ireland). He was, nevertheless the quickest hound over Harlow’s 415m this week with a 26.29 (+10) run. It was a new ‘PB’ for the veteran who found a calculated 60 spots on his previous outing and looks set to a return to A1, which he last contested in May.
Kinsley staged their best graded race in a while on Friday, a rare A1. The defending champ Kilara Thyestes (7/4) is in the form of his life and was principally opposed by Ballymac Alyssa whose 27.54 was quicker than anything the champ had previously produced. But come the hour, come the King Of Olympia (or at least the hound he was named after) with a new PB of 27.53. That’s three wins and a second in his last four outings.
Port West Storm had already been selected three times as a Performer of the Week when she went to the Sunderland 450m traps on Friday. It was a tough enough A1 with Borneo Bucks made the 2/1fav. But Dean Blackbird’s brindle, who had a 26.94 winning line of form last time out, franked that run with a box-to-beam from running display in the fastest time of the week.
There was some decent open racing from Monmore on Saturday with Craig Morris’s Chelms Sonny the pick of the four-benders with a 28.08 run. But the best race of the night was arguably a heat of a 630m competition won by Nathan Hunt’s Droopys Flotilla. Although not quite as quick as brother Droopys Clue when he won the Stayers Classic Final, she was followed home by the likes of Clona Curly and Savana Jackpot in a decent 37.89.
Things were a little more subdued at Doncaster on Saturday with only graded fare. For the top performer we have to look back a week to last Monday and the puppy sprinter Dannys Flyer. His 16.75 for the 275m is just 12 spots off the fastest time of the year. That’s four in a row for Debbie Calvert’s black who has packed on three kilos since his qualifying trials.
There are six-dog races that are effectively two-dog races with four ‘others’. Not so Oxford’s best minor open of the week on Saturday where the defending POW Antigua Bubble (26.88 last time out) went to traps as a 6/1 chance. The layers went with Alwaysspotterless (6/4f), who boasted six wins and three seconds in his last nine races. But they underestimated ‘Big Kev’s’ Bit View Philly (7/2) who overcame some average trapping by surging to the front and romping up by three lengths in 26.69.
Nothing jumps off the Crayford Sunday evening results sheet with Ricky Holloway claiming half of the ten races. Pick of the crop is Signet Harper over the 380m hurdle course where she clocked 23.45. That is seven wins in her last nine for the British bred bitch who never raced on the flat. Four of the litter have won opens with the star being beaten British Breeders favourite Coppice Gracie.
Pelaw Grange staged the first of their Saturday cards this weekend, just the four races, backed up by the regular Sunday meeting. Unusually, six of the winners broke the significant 26.00 barrier, the quickest of which was Laughil Rex with a six length 25.58 run. It was his first win in five outings at Pelaw. His last Irish success was a 29.50 run at Newbridge last December.
