Evergreen mare Tricky Styx has started from the No. 1 barrier at three of her 60 starts (all in mobiles) in Western Australia and she has set the pace and won each time, at Gloucester Park in December 2014, at Pinjarra in August 2015 and at Gloucester Park in June this year.
She will start from the coveted No. 1 barrier on the front line in the 2130m Follow Gloucester Park On Facebook Pace on Friday night and although she has been unplaced at her past six outings she deserves to come under serious consideration, particularly after her runaway win in a 2150m trial at Byford on Sunday morning.
She started from the outside barrier in the trial and was restrained to last in the field of eight. She was sixth at the bell before starting a three-wide move 650m from home. She sprinted fast and took the lead 420m from the finish. She careered away from her rivals and won the trial by just under twelve lengths from the pacemaker Extreme Prince, rating 1.57 after final quarters in 29.4sec. and 28.5sec.
Aiden de Campo has driven Tricky Styx for 18 of her 21 wins. But he has opted to handle cracking New Zealand mare A Piccadilly Princess, who will start from the No. 2 barrier on the back line in Friday night’s race.
Northam trainer Jesse Moore has engaged Dylan Egerton-Green to drive Tricky Styx. Egerton-Green has handled the six-year-old three times for an all-the-way victory from barrier one, a second and a fourth.
Tricky Styx has proved a real bargain. Moore outlaid just $NZ5000 for her at the New Zealand premier yearling sale in Christchurch in 2013 and she has amassed $422,528 from 21 wins and 12 placings from 63 starts.
Tricky Styx and A Piccadilly Princess are the only mares in the field of 12 on Friday night and they are likely to be supported solidly. A Piccadilly Princess, who has had 40 starts for 16 wins, eight seconds and two thirds for stakes of $686,311, impressed last Friday night when she started out wide at barrier eight, raced three wide early and then in the breeze for more than two laps before fighting on to finish third behind My Hard Copy and Bettors Fire over 2130m.
She won the Group 3 Parliamentarians Cup over 2130m at a 1.55.8 rate two starts before that when she led after 400m and scored easily from Ideal Alice and Ameretto.
The powerful Bond stable holds a strong hand in Friday night’s event, with Skye Bond the trainer of Delightful Offer, Condrieu and Simply Susational, and her husband Greg the trainer of Our Jimmy Johnstone.
All are capable of a winning effort, with Ryan Warwick, the stable’s No. 1 driver, giving punters a valuable lead by opting to handle nine-year-old Our Jimmy Johnstone, who will start from barrier six on the front line.
Colin Brown will handle Delightful Offer, Michael Blakemore will drive Condrieu and Nathan Turvey will be in the sulky behind Simply Susational.
