Central Park track record locked down with stunning display
Droopys Display set stunning new figures of 28.45 for the Central Park 491m trip to lift the Premier Greyhound Racing Kent Derby crown.
The quote on the Central Park pen pics on X ahead of last night’s final read, “he is lightly raced but doesn’t have a huge amount of early pace.” Cue Droopys Display coming out through the bars in the final to give them all a running lesson from the front! Dogs make fools of the best of us but connections won’t mind one bit after his £20,000 Category One success.
The JR Syndicate-owned and Maxine Locke-trained son of Dromana Bucko was a little under five lengths adrift of King Memphis in the semis last week. A three length differential on their combined sectionals was more than enough to turn the tables with the Liz McNair-trained odds on favourite struggling to clear the winner’s kennelmate Droopys Manowar on the run to the bend.
El Tornillo was denied the lead and Dave Lee’s hound was only able to finish third after the winner had cracked out inside him. Lemon Anton also won on the evening for the Locke kennel.
The other final on the card was a sprint contest which went to the Spencer Mavrias-trained King Marvin in 16.25. He was the quickest in the heats seven nights back and the move to the Orange jacket from stripes made no difference to him as he saw off the Dan Brabon trained pair, Killuran Bella and Merrymeeting Lil.
Mavrias also won with Teachers Class while Brabon had been on target with Rewind Daisy in another sprint earlier on the card. Tony Collett picked up a double courtesy of Outdoor Cracker and Turbine Tilly. Barry O’Sullivan was another trainer to hit the target twice with Empress Of Rome and Farneys Joe doing the business.
Other winners on the card were All Along for Dave Lee, Antigua Kestrel for Kevin Hutton and Beach Babe for Tom Levers. The last named set new figures for the rarely used 946m trip.
The Oaks final six are set
Triumph and tragedy at Perry Barr on Saturday night.
Druids Say Go extended her winning sequence, foot perfect once more for Patrick Janssens in the Premier Greyhound Racing Oaks. She now has the two fastest times of 2024 over the 480m trip and will be a short price to finish the job next week from what, on paper at least, looks the kindest draw of the competition so far.
Droopys Eunice (Maxine Locke) and Coppice Ella (Kevin Hutton) chased Druids Say Go home. The former also made the final of the Empress Stakes at Towcester recently. The latter was the British Bred Oaks winner at Oxford in August.
The other semi final was won by Nathan Hunt’s Icemans Girl. Another to represent the Empress Stakes form, she led home Front Alice for Kevin Proctor and Chamberlain Kate for Carol Weatherall. Front Alice was the Golden Sprint winner at Romford earlier in he year. Chamberlain Kate is the youngest and lightest raced of the sextet, a litter sister to Puppy Derby winner Untold Dollar.
Sadly Queen Joni sustained an injury in that semi-final, more on her below.
Retirement for Queen Joni
Rab McNair has confirmed that Queen Joni’s racing career is over following a broken hock sustained when leading her Oaks semi final into the second bend at Perry Barr on Saturday night.
McNair said: “It’s a bad one. She has been strapped up and she was feeling a bit under the weather last night and wouldn’t eat her food.
“We made up the biggest bed for her I could have slept on it myself. In fact I lay there with her for half an hour and gave her a cuddle. By this morning she was back to herself, had eaten all her food and was ready to go up the field.
“She is off to the vet at Linfield at six o’clock and we will get her sorted. I am absolutely gutted but these things happen in dog racing. Nobody is to blame – but somehow these injuries when a dog is clear – seem to hit you worse than when they are injured in bumping.
But I still have my little baby. She will be our next brood and I can’t wait to see her pups.
“Her mum’s next litter, by Eden The Kid came into the kennel two weeks ago and we have to look forward and not back.”
Joni (Droopys Sydney-Queen Jessiej) went to traps on 35 occasions (including last night) and won on 27 occasions (77%) including four Category One competitions: the Kent Plate, the Produce Stakes, the British Bred Derby and the Brighton Belle plus the Cat Two, Derby Plate.
She is the Swindon 470m record holder, and until a fortnight ago, also had the Hove 500m clock at 28.81.
Queen Joni and Rab
Rab also spoke on Central Park last night
It was a particularly disappointing night for the KSS Syndicate with favourite King Memphis the beaten 4/7 favourite in the PGR Kent Derby Final.
Rab said: “We all knew, I think it was mentioned in the show from Romford on Friday, that the dog in one (Droopys Manowar) is not a close railer and is likely to move off. That was what happened and he held Memphis up.
“To be honest, even if we had won it, with what happened to Joni, I wouldn’t have wanted to celebrate anyway.”
But among all the gloom, there was one bright spot on the night. King Marvin landed a £1,000 sprint final for Spencer Mavrias.
Rab said: “He is from the Hiya Butt and Queen Anna litter and I originally sold him to George Andreas for £800 and he has since ended up with Spencer. Spencer and his girlfriend were delighted last night which was lovely.
“The litter weren’t quite good enough for us and were a bit hyper but they haven’t done bad. I sold several more in the litter to Joanne Atkins for £500 each and most of them made top grade at Doncaster.”
Oisin sets the clock in the Arc Scurry semi-finals
A new track record for the Kevin Hutton-trained sprinter on Saturday.
Successful in five of his six career races, Rioja Oisin has burst onto the sprint scene spectacularly for Kevin Hutton. He nudged the track record a week back before breaking it last night. Clearly an exciting sprint prospect, he won on his Cork debut in 28.61 in December 2023. That potentially opens up more doors down the line for him. Long Fellow qualified in second for Matt Dartnall. A Birmingham Cup finalist at the track last month, he has shown excellent adaptability on his drop to two bends.
Steve Anderson has two in the final, Bramble Oreo causing a shock in his semi-final, beating his better fancied kennelmarte Bramble Linton. Oreo is an interesting one lining up on the immediate left of Rioja Oisin in the final. He has shown on more than one occasion that he has a bingo break in the locker.
Silver Salver winner Magical Bluebear has made another big final for William Russell. He led home King Capaldi in his semi with that rival set to move left from three in the final next week should give the Russell dog a fair shot at a big race double.
Freddie is fastest in the opening round at Shelbourne
The first two nights of the Boylesports Irish Derby are in the book with the draw for next week complete.
March On Freddie stopped the clock in 29.19 to produce the quickest time over the 26 heats, four spots quicker than his litter brother, Bockos Diamond who set the Saturday standard. It was an exceptional weekend for the litter with Brindle Bully winning the Coral Silver Standard at Romford on Friday night and also Aero Pattika winning at Monmore last night.
It was a great night for Patrick Godfrey as well whose Arthur Cornflake made it safely though to the second round. He chased home the Kirby winner Knockeen Dazzler, only beaten three-quarters of a length.
English Derby runner-up Boylesports Bob won his heat in a slick 29.25. He powered home late to run down the long time leader Short Grip with Tuono Charlie losing his unbeaten record in third but making it safely though. His Towcester conqueror De Lahdedah made it through in third place in a later heat.
It was a bad night for those who had made the Laurels final with both Crafty Shivoo and Romeo Taylor failing to make it into the hat for the next round.
The draw for the second round of the Boylesports Irish Derby was made late last night.
Droopys Stud Fair Warrior semi-finals
The finalists will be known by 4.20 at Mullingar.
Pavillion Fire was the fastest in the second round last week. The defending champion goes to traps at 4.18 for Aidan McVeigh. He went unbeaten in 2023, turned over by half a length in the opening round but making no mistake seven days back. Leahs Best to his immediate left looks the main danger. He was a winner last week for John Atkinson.
The opening semi-final is at 3.59 where Jennifer O’Donnell’s Born Racer clashes with Pat Buckley’s Road Exile. There was seven lengths between them when they met in the first round with Road Exile coming out on top. Born Racer went a spot quicker in the second round so it will be interesting to see how the pair match up again this afternoon.
Stats
- Slippy Keith – 2.49 Sheffield – 6/7 when drawn in three.
- Westfield Bullet – 3.13 Towcester – 10/17 at the track.
- Acomb Irene – 4.04 Sheffield – 8/13 from trap four.
- Pavillion Fire – 4.18 Mullingar – 5/6 here so far in his career.
- Not So Slow – 5.03 Towcester – 6/8 when racing at Towcester in the past.
- Skywalker Amanda – 6.37 – 9/17 at the track.
- Glenvale Bjorn – 7.04 Pelaw – 5/9 when racing in an A2.
- Chamberlain Anne – 8.09 Clonmel – 5/9 in A4 grade.
Opens
Sunday: Sheffield
Friday: Romford
Saturday: Perry Barr
