Joe’s Thursday Bets

***9.16 Hove – Droopys Extragud 9/2 (2pts)
**6.08 Hove – Bower Gift 5/4 (2pts)
*7.16 Hove – Hopiehopiehopie 5/2 (1pt)
A full open race card at Hove this evening with plenty of clues for the upcoming category one events over the 515m trip (Coral Olympic) and 740m distance (George Curtis & Ballyregan Bob).
The nap of the evening is in the last race at 9.16pm. Droopys Extragud runs from trap one in the Coral Olympic Trial Stakes and has took to the track extremely well over the 500m distance with two eye-catching runs in victory and defeat. A staying on second behind Bluejig Baron last week sees him go over the extended four bend trip with an ideal draw to work from inside Rioja Bungle who he can hold to the bend. This is a strong race with Birmingham Cup Winner Rioja Bungle in trap two, Kent Derby winner Droopys Display in trap 6 as well as Uncle Freddie in trap five and Missile One in trap four with All Along in trap three a very capable type but if Droopys Extragud can turn in a prominent position, his middle pace and staying power can see him victorious.
The next best of the evening is trap one Bower Gift in the first race at 6.08pm. A fairly newcomer to the UK, Bower Gift has started her career brightly with a 29.30 A2 success followed by an impressive display behind Clona Uriel in A1 last time out over track and trip. She has a brilliant make up this evening with Towcester raider Jacktavern Pele in trap two a middle to wide runner at his home track and four wide runners in the race in traps three to six, Bower Gift should have all the room in the world to dictate matters from the first bend onwards.
The third bet for the evening is going to be trap three Hopiehopiehopie in the George Curtis & Ballyregan Bob Trial Stakes over 740m at 7.16pm. Hopiehopiehopie was disappointing last week when leading and being beat comfortably by Move Over Ogie, however last weeks race had Tuono Bella keeping Hopiehopiehopie honest throughout whereas tonight I fully expect her to lead or turn close enough to Harlequin Beauty to take advantage and reverse the form with Move Over Ogie who repossess from trap six.

An introduction to the Premier Greyhound Racing Classic finalists – Sunderland, Friday 

 

Friday November 15

Trainer Steven Anderson (Newcastle)   Owner: Chloe Hardy

Far from disgraced when fourth to the brilliant Ballinabola Ed in the valuable Race Of Champions (503m, Tralee) last year in his native Ireland, Bramble Linton has come a long way since scoring in A2 grade on his debut over Newcastle’s 480 metres in January. The September ’21 son of prolific sire Ballymac Vic showed his versatility when third to Rioja Oisin in the final of the £7,500 Scurry Gold Cup (275 metres) at Perry Barr last month. He is closely matched with Brindle Bully, the favourite to take the title, on a couple of sterling efforts in the earlier rounds and his approximate odds of around 3/1 appear a fair guide to his chance of winning this coveted prize. A tremendous credit to his trainer, Bramble Linton will give backers a great run for their money and the level of his form is good enough for him to go close in a PGR Classic final in a normal year. The best way for him to take the title is to crack out in front and make all the running from the red box.  Approximate odds ​​3-1 ​​​​

 

Trainer Matt Dartnall (Oxford)     Owner Jonathan Deane

The emergence of Matt Dartnall as one of the country’s leading open-race trainers in 2008 – Ballymac Under triumphed in the Juvenile Championship and also landed the Birmingham Cup the same season – was well-chronicled and the Oxford-based handler has a real shot of capturing this £20,000 annual. Fire And Ice, previously very difficult to beat when making the first corner in front, won his first three opens over Hove’s 500 metres. He is a versatile sort and showed his prowess when plundering the £10,000 Coral Puppy Cup (400 metres) at Romford in September. An impressive 26.86sec (calc) winner in the semi-finals of the PGR Classic, he and is clearly at home in the contours of this venue and will doubtless give his connections an adrenalin rush when the mechanical lure is making its way to the starting traps. Quoted at around 3/1 with the off-course firms for outright honours, Fire And Ice would not easily relinquish an early lead.   Approximate odds ​​3-1​​​​​

 

Trainer Tom Heilbron (Newcastle)              Owners Tom Heilbron & David Wilson

‘Hot Trainer’ Tom Heilbron – he has achieved a strike-rate of more than 21% in open races during the current campaign – is represented by Unanimous Leon in the latest edition of the PGR Classic and the March 22 whelp may prove a lively longshot for the speculative backer.Unanimous Leon, who has been campaigned exclusively in opens throughout his entire career, has won at six different tracks – Towcester (500m), Newcastle (480m), Sheffield (500m), Sunderland (450m), Oxford (450m) and Perry Barr (480m). Unanimous Leon, a good all-rounder, put up a good effort to take third behind Links Maverick in the opening round of the PGR Classic and subsequently lost no caste in defeat when chasing home CoolavannyMercy in the semi-finals. He requires a flying start from trap three to lead on the dash to the first bend – therein lies his chance of becoming one of the longest-priced winners in the history of this showpiece which was inaugurated in2007.   Approximate odds​​ 12-1​

 

Owner & trainer Garry Hamilton (Pelaw Grange)

A four-length winner from Brindle Bully, who renews rivalry eight months later, when making a winning debut in a 480-metre open at Cork in March, Oscar The Ground has had his ups and downs in the interim period and rates an outsider in this final. At Limerick in September, he ran a good race to hunt up the smart Tarsna Maasai in the final of a Mini Open Stakes over 480 metres. In the first round of the £20,000 PGR Classic (450 metres), Oscar TheGrouch ran a satisfactory race to secure the runner-up spot behind Links Maverick and he then occupied the same position behind Fire And Ice in the semi-finals. The least exposed runner in an above-standard final of the PGR Classic, the Pelaw Grange raider has a bright future over middle-distances and is one for the notebook whatever his fate on this occasion. The vagaries of the trap draw will add extra degrees of difficulty to the size of the task facing the fast-finishing Oscar The Grouch and he may get down to business too late.   Approximate odds​​ 12-1​​​​

 

Angela Harrison (Newcastle).  Owners Tony Camsell, Fred Ellison, John Hardman & Bobby Lindsay

Angela Harrison has previously won the Classic on no fewer than three occasions – Droopys Country (2017), Velvet Juliet (2019) and Move Over Cha (2022) – and she fields a legitimate contender in tonight’s final courtesy of an experienced Category One player, namely Coolavanny Mercy. Few greyhounds at the top level can match the consistency of the December ’21 whelp – she has been placed in 28 of her previous 41 starts – and, one of six Irish-bred greyhounds through to this final, she has a definite chance of getting involved at the business end of the race. She scorched home by more than five lengths from 2024 Pall Mall victor Aero Sacundai in the qualifying round and then maintained her unbeaten run during this event when readily outpointing Unanimous Leon by almost two lengths in the semi-finals. A multiple Category One finalist Coolavanny Merci, who can do it both ends, is certain to impose herself on the race and should be thereabouts.   Approximate odds​​ 9-2​

 

David Mullins (Romford).    Owners B B Syn (Brindle Bully Syndicate)

David Mullins, a former trainer at Sunderland, first hit the headlines at the top level with the success of Pottos Storm in the Champion Stakes at Romford in 1998 and he has a live chance of adding to his lengthy haul of big-race triumphs with the progressive Brindle Bully in this shoot-out. He stamped himself an outstanding prospect for the rest of the season and beyond when marauding unbeaten through the £5,000 Coral Silver Standard (400 metres) at Romford last month. There is little to choose between Bramble Linton and Brindle Bully judged on a couple of epic buckles in the qualifying rounds, though the latter seems certain to be sent off at a short price in this final. His blend of speed and stamina will make him a particularly tough nut to crack from trap six. Already priced at 25-1 for the 2025 Greyhound Derby at Towcester, those odds may be clipped if he displays the full majesty of his talent in a contest that is worth going a long way to see.   Approximate odds​​ 13-8​​​​

OPENS

Thursday: Hove ♦ Swindon
Friday: Romford ♦ Sunderland
Saturday: Doncaster ♦ Monmore ♦ Oxford ♦  Perry Barr
Sunday: Crayford ♦ Sheffield ♦ Towcester