There were some Fabulous/Romeo performances over the weekend starting at Romford on Friday and the Coral Puppy Cup win of Romeo Crusade. The record book will show a 23.97 run by a 20-1 shot. It won’t show that the winner was 19 months old and contesting just his third race. But we can’t ignore the flying 46.52run from Teds Dexter in the Mitch Millward Memorial just 15 spots outside a 13 year old track record.
Even more fab was January pup Fabulous Dyna at Towcester on Sunday. The Dave Firmager bred baby clocked 43.27 when winning by 21 lengths (that is TWENTY ONE lengths) from brother Romeo Havok. To put the run into perspective, Savana Heross did 43.60 on the same card.
92 minutes later, English Derby runner-up Romeo Command warmed up for the PGR Kent Derby with a 29.42 win at Central Park. Of his 21 races in Britain, that was win 17.
Ex Central Park A4 runner Annadown Ruby finally got her head in front at Harlow on her tenth attempt. The A6 runner clocked the fastest time of the week, 26.35.
When A1/A2 local Tyrone made her six bend debut on Monday, the Colwick Park locals could have hardly expected what they were about to witness. Freely available at 6-1, she romped up by eight lengths in 41.40. To put that into perspective, the closest time to it in the last year was Bellmore Sally’s 41.42.
Even without knowing Rallying Range’s career story, it seems a fair guess that it has been troubled. Beaten on his A3 Monmore debut in 291.3, he won next time out in 28.31. That was four months ago during which time he has raced just four more times. But trainer Graham Rankin’s patience seems to have borne fruit when in just the sixth race of his career, the blue clocked the fastest time in Sheffield’s Tuesday night opens, 28.62. His next outing is in tomorrow’s Bresbet Steel City Cup heats.
Suffolk Downs staged their regular opens on Thursday and even had a match race. But nobody is shifting Bodell Frankie from her throne. Last four races: A1-23.95, A1-23.88, A1-23.86, A1-23.86. Presumably they had the timer serviced after the first of them.
Doodlebug Lad copied Frankie in keeping his crown for a second week, which takes some doing when you are only 19 months old with three races on your card. That’s week’s 29.53 (-10) for Hove’s 500m was followed by a 29.47 (N) for the Rees runner.
Meanwhile his hugely popular kennelmate Whats Up Eva (PB 29.17) laid down a marker for the forthcoming PGR Oaks with an impressive 28.58 (-30) trialstake win at Perry Barr on Saturday. Although almost ready to draw her pension, she is in fabulous form and will be looking to progress further than last year’s second round.
Riverside Lisa is another finding her name in gold type after landing her third Newcastle A1. The punter’s choice despite the presence of March On Larry and Droopys Biggy, Ronnie Hale’s bitch produced her best run to date, 28.39.
A fortnight ago, Kitty The Step was blown away when Angel of the North Magical Camilla took a rare step back to graded racing with a 27.03 A1 win at Sunderland. Half the field returned without Camilla and Kitty stepped up with a 27.08 run.
For ‘Magical Camilla’ substitute Inniskeel Josie, who is just a bit better than a graded runner at Pelaw Grange. Having won opens at Doncaster and Sunderland, the strapping black female (31.7kg) returned from lameness to beat the best at the track in a new ‘fastest of year’ for the 435m, 25.40.
Things didn’t work out quite so well for defending Oxford champ Coppice Tenzin who found himself up against two fellow Pall Mall finalists in Ivanexile and Eze on Friday. In fact it was the dog who finished a three quarter length runner-up to Links Maverick who came out on top in a flying 26.62. For a dog who always has to come through his field, Angie Kibble’s hound has a remarkable recent record of 10 times in the forecast places in his last 11 races (1st-7, 2nd-3).
The Swindon opens have finished but there was an open class run from Frank Bryce’s debutant Dashing Dude in a D1 graded sprint. The 16.28 Clonmel winner was just four spots off the Blunsdon fastest run of the year on a track rated at -5.
On the subject of sprinters, it has been a couple of years since anything went faster around the Henlow 277m course than Ballyard Shawny in a Bedfordshire Sprint trialstake. Breeding students may use Shawny as an example of litter diversity. His comrades include Puppy Classic winner Distant Podge, Springbok finalist Distant George and Three Steps winner Distant Emma.
Ballymac Frisby was also from a successful litter of seven dogs and six bitches. He might not have hit the heights of Ballymac brothers Marino or Archer but he produced the quickest middle distance run at Kinsley this week with a 27.68 run in A3.
It was more of a sister act at neighbouring Doncaster. Their POW Star Millie lost her crown at 11.01 on Sunday when fourth to 30.30 A1 winner Road America. But at 11.31 sister Agile Annie landed another A1 in the week’s fastest 483, 30.08 (-60).
There would be an argument to have Feora Noel’s 34.03 for the Crayford 540m hurdles course as the POW, since it is the fifth fastest run of the year. But given Water Lane’s 23.14 is the sixth fastest run over the much more competitive 380 flat course, it has to be the Whitton trained runner.
Monmore was running fast on Saturday with a number of fast times. But the best run of the week came from Stouke Salah is Thursday’s A1. It completes a three month rise that began with defeat in A8 for Brian Thompson’s 29.28 Thurles winner.
Yarmouth was back to graded fare last week but Paul Burr’s Roxys Bullet looked a class apart when seeing off an A1 field in 27.75 – his fourth win in his last five races.
