Roxholme Dream took a giant stride forward in the Pin Point Health and Homecare Three Steps to Victory at Sheffield on Tuesday when the Hayley Keightley-trained bitch stormed round 480-metre trip in a fabulous 27.38 to defeat Viking Jack by a length and threequarters in heat three.
That was a clock just six spots outside the track record and with the next two rounds over 500 and 660 metres it puts last year’s St Leger winner in a very strong position and her trainer was in raptures with the performance, saying: “How could she do that against those kind of dogs over four bends. She showed unbelievable pace and she must have been seven lengths clear at the pick-up.”
Elwick Glory was favourite for the opening qualifier but couldn’t match the early pace of Farneys Cookie, who pulled away to score by three and a half lengths in 27.52, while the second heat saw a great tussle between Russanda Brax and Geelo Midnight, the former hanging on by a neck in 27.78.
It was even closer in heat four where there was absolutely nothing between Coolavanny Fish and Dinzeo at the line, the judge calling a dead-heat in 27.79, and champion trainer Mark Wallis threw his hat into the ring in the next as Jimmy Nailed On took control of a troubled race down the back straight and went on to defeat Cremartin Lark by a length and threequarters in 27.97.
Jim Hayton, trainer of Viking Jack, cheered home a winner as his Lowgate Jasper brought the curtain down on the opening round by finishing strongly to overhaul Quick Impact on the run-in and score by two and a half lengths in 27.65.
