Ratings and Analysis by Pete Walker
The first category competition of the year at Monmore Green is the four bend 480m distance for greyhound puppies whelped in April 2015 or younger. It has a first prize of £12,500 to the winner of this category one event for young racing recruits. Nearly all the fancied runners got through the heats apart from Droopys Argento. I have compiled comparative ratings with the top three from each race indicated below as well as the overall top four of all the semi-finalists including best prices on offer at the time of assessment. I know it’s not an exact science but I have made slight adjustments to the going allowances in calculating my ratings.
1st Semi-Final
T6 (W) – 191: Dorotas Woo Hoo
T5 (M) – 168: Bridgehouse Boy
T2 (R) – 165: Farloe Thor
2nd Semi-Final
T5 (W) – 191: Droopys Bonicci
T4 (M) – 134: Santas Son
T3 (R) – 130: Cuba Libre
3rd Semi-Final
T1 (R) – 143: Swift Melampe
T6 (W) – 139: Forest Con
T5 (M) – 137: Dorotas Wildcat
Top 4
191: Dorotas Woo Hoo (9/2)
191: Droopys Bonicci (5/1)
168: Bridgehouse Boy (25/1)
165: Farloe Thor (8/1)
Ratings based on a maximum of 200 reflect only recent performances over the course and distance. Track conditions at the time of racing may affect future performances of course. There were 10 railers, 4 middle and 4 wides who qualified from the heats. Charlie Lister’s joint top-rated Dorotas Woo Hoo is expected to progress through to the final but if you’re seeking a live outsider, consider Bridgehouse Boy. After a slow start (although matching split times with the aforementioned winner), he was seen running on and finished his race officially only three spots slower. Droopys Bonicci should have the measure of his rivals and liked the way he showed track craft to cut the corners. For a young dog, it bodes well for the rest of the competition. The third semi-final appears to be a tighter contest on paper but slight preference goes to Swift Melampe who chased home Dorotas Woo Hoo after a fast sectional in their previous race. The final is on Thursday 16th March and shown live on Sky Sports so good luck to all greyhounds and connections.
