Which is the better run? A 30.12 (-30) for 515 or 42.34 for Hove’s 695m? With due acknowledgement to the fastest Sussex Cup heat winner Droopys Google, we have to go to the Regency hopeful, Bubbly Scorcher whose closest rival on the clock was the one length runner-up Baggios Champ. Paul Young’s runner was 45 spots off the FOY on -60. The Hunt hound was half a length quicker than Havana Bale Out and 41 spots off the FOY on -30.
Meanwhile at Oxford, Ivanexile made it four wins from his last six in the Pall Mall first round. Matt Dartnall’s black, who has never been out of the forecast positions at Cowley, clocked a new PB of 26.71 (-20). Links Maverick’s clock is 26.52 (N).
On Sunday, New Destiny retained her Towcester POW title when landing the fastest heat of the Juvenile Classic first round. Technically though, she wasn’t even the quickest in the van. The similarly aged Newinn Syd – fifth in the ‘trialstakes’ went a neck quicker in a maiden.
There were some decent females in the line four first round heats of the ARC Angel Of The North at Newcastle on Thursday. Quickest of the lot though was the locally bred pup Harley Lous Girl with a career best 28.62 run. More to come from this one surely?
Emers Bonnie contested one A3 race in Byker but seems a lot happier at Sunderland. On Sunday she produced a new PB and the fastest 450 of the week when seeing off an A2 field in 27.25.
Seven minutes later, Mustang Tyson returned to Pelaw Grange after a three week break. On his previous visit he secured the POW with a 26.13 run. The break seems to have done the veteran the world of good as he posted 25.78, his fastest run in eight months.
The much travelled Chasmill Runaway seems to have spend most of his career on the run: Monmore A4, Towcester A3, Newcastle A2 but seems to have found a track that suits him better than anywhere else, Nottingham. On Monday he clocked the fastest 500 metre open race run of the week, 29.65 (+50) for Lynn Cook.
The quickest run of the week at Perry Barr was Porthall Chief’s 28.68 (N) on Thursday. But the real players were all in action on Saturday night where ex-Nottingham A3 runner Beechwood Tony came out on top in a competitive A1 in 28.78 (-10).
Inca Jerry spent a week basking in the glory of having turned over Stevie Knows at Sheffield. The locals reckoned the pup would struggle to repeat the feat and the 15-8 chance was duly turned over by the even money favourite by a nod under five lengths.
Team Draper were also busy at Monmore on Saturday where the two outstanding performances came from kennelmates Droopys Pointer (28.29-480) and Distant Emma (38.16-630). Not much between them but we’ve gone for the versatile Emma whose six wins this year have been on four different tracks.
The Rab McNair bred Hiya Butt/Queen Anna litter have been a bit slow to come to hand but have ‘grown another leg’ since hitting two. Litter comrades Kjng Legend and Queen Etta have been running D1 for Joanne Atkins at Doncaster. On Sunday their brother King Morrison was just two spots off the FOY for the sprint on slow going, and no one would have been more delighted than the Scotsman. (It isn’t clear whether he is quite as excited at having sold King Stevens at a particularly benevolent price to Tony Collett and then seeing the ungrateful mutt beat him in a photo in a £500 final at Central Park. Can’t wait to see how the Sussex Cup develops. Stevens won his heat on Saturday night!)
On the subject of Central Park, nobody could deny Laughil Jess her latest ‘track record’ on Sunday. Although the distance is new and the surface is still settling, Dave Lee’s bitch found 14 spots on her previous clock and has now won seven of her last eight races on three different tracks from 415-540m.
Harlow was running -20 slow for the standard distance on Wednesday when they staged their regulation 23 races. Ex-Drumbo 28.73 winner Sober Panther was quickest on the day was with a 26.56 run.
There were a couple of contenders of the Suffolk Downs nomination. Athlacca Chief was in the shake-up after a 23.68 open race win for the 388m. But it has to go Dereen Diva who was 11 spots off her 220m track record with her fifth win in six career races at the West Row stadium.
Decent competitive opens at Swindon again this week. The previous POW was Matt Dartnall’s Lively Lauren who beat track record record holder Ballymac Mags by four and a half lengths in 41.76. The new POW is Lauren’s kennelmate Stone Of Life who beat the same opposition by a couple of lengths in 41.76.
Home bred Jaffa was the fastest of the open winners at Yarmouth on Saturday night but his 27.86 had been eclipsed three days earlier by Come Asyouare. Irene Barndard’s A1 winner completed a hat-trick in 27.76 having previously gone 16 races without beating the grader.
Craig Morris’ Knockduff Eske (PB 27.74) has contested 10 A1s at Yarmouth winning two. He has also taken part in 10 opens at Romford, winning four, including a new PB and fastest 400 open on Friday, 23.75. Incidentally – owners and trainers might want to note that this Friday’s opens will all be worth £500 to the winner.
Lenson Doolin clocked the fastest 380 at Crayford on Saturday lunchtime, notwithstanding he had to jump five hurdles. That is career win 35 from 67 races, a strike rate of 52%.
The week finished with events at Henlow and Kinsley that were effectively weekly track championships. At Henlow, the big face-off was between the last two track champs, Jogon Blue and Salacres Blake in A1. In virtually a re-run of last week, both broke badly, and both were involved in a first bend dust up. But the Devenish bang railer (14 red jackets in his last 15 races) took full advantage to power through on the rail.
A fortnight ago Ballymac Wynett was the Kinsely ’queen bee’ until an internal coup in the Heaton Kennel saw her deposed by Ballymac Frisby. Wynett was back in this week’s feature race but there was no return to power with Caydans Destiny (last in the same race) springing a 5-1 surprise in 28.14 (-10).
