On a night of shocks where the top two in the betting were beaten, and Greyhound of the Year Dorotas Wildcat was eliminated, Hove racing manager Jeff Piper nominated King Dylan for his performance of the night in the opening round of the Coral Winter Derby.

The main focus on the night was heat three where Dorotas Wildcat went to traps at 1-5f but was never seen with a winner’s chance after trapping slowly, being crowded at the bend and then running out of steam late on.

Piper said: “There was a concern after his trial because the sectional wasn’t particularly fast. I am not really sure what to make of the run, I did think Wildcat ran a bit flat and hope he is okay this morning.”

Interestingly, Piper did touch on a potential angle for the defeat when comparing the 490 metre course to the traditional 515 metres.

He said: “It has gone pretty well overall. The biggest difference that we have noticed is that many of the dogs who rely on their early pace on the run up, don’t make it to the bend in front anymore. It is the fastest trappers that get clear.”

Trainer Kevin Hutton agrees. He said: “There doesn’t appear to be a lot wrong with him this morning, barring a bit of a whack he gave to his old track leg injury. We will get him checked over though I don’t expect to find much.

“I think the ‘490’ is a bit like the old ‘475’ where you would only enter fast trappers. After coming away slowly, I thought he ran as you would expect for a dog having his first race in a while.

“We don’t have too many plans bar the Derby. I was hoping to get a few more runs at Hove into him but we will probably stick to Swindon and Monmore. I very much doubt that he will run him in either the Steel City Cup or the Trainers Championship.”

In terms of the rest of the meeting, and the semi finals, Piper believes the McNair kennel will be playing a major part in the rest of the competition.

He said: “I thought King Dylan produced the performance of the night. He didn’t trap but showed outstanding backstraight pace. Obviously, he will need to trap quicker to avoid trouble later in the event.

“He takes on Trade Fudge in the semi finals, though Fudge has trap five and I don’t think his record is anywhere near as good as when he goes from six. If Danny Brabon’s dog traps like he did in the first round though, there aren’t many dogs in the country who would catch him.

“The second semi final looks to between Rab’s (Liz McNair’s) three. I thought Turbo ran very well on his return and if he traps on Thursday, they won’t catch him. But I am not convinced that red is his ideal draw. I think King Cash looks far better drawn in six.

“Volcanic Reef has been crying out for trap one in the first semi final and will probably start very short in the betting. But Nans Padjoe is well capable of smashing away and leading all the way.”