Daryl Douglas displays the style that has netted almost 400 winners this season
Daryl Douglas won the first race at Horsham on Wednesday, but he remains almost certain to come up short in his quest to become the first driver to partner 400 winners in an Australasian harness racing season.
The 35-year-old made it 385 wins for the racing year when he combined with $1.20 hot pot Mister Ballymurphy to win the SEW-Eurodrive C0 Pace at Horsham.
But with the season to conclude on Sunday, it left the Bendigo-based reinsman, who broke Kerryn Manning’s Australasian record of 371 winners in a season on August 14, with just four days to notch the magical figure.
But even with the 400-win milestone seemingly out of his reach, Douglas will embark on a typically taxing schedule to round out the season.
He has a mouth-watering set of drives at Thursday's eight-race Ouyen meeting at Mildura. Along with favourites Takeabow (race one) and Rocky Beau (race seven), he will also take the reins aboard second or third favourites Safe Option (race two), In Bootsn All (race three) and Redfern Cruiser (race eight).
Douglas then has five drives at both Friday meetings – Yarra Valley during the day and Moonee Valley at night – a further five at Geelong on Saturday night before rounding out the season with four drives at Kilmore on Sunday.
Douglas will be officially crowned Victoria’s leading driver for the third-straight season following the Kilmore fixture.
All but eight of his 2007/08 winners have come on Victorian tracks and he enjoys a 165-win buffer over second-placed Gavin Lang.
Chris Alford, who like Lang is a seven-time winner of the Victorian premiership, sits in third place on 147 with Kerryn Manning (143) and Nathan Jack (136) rounding out the top five.
Sunday’s meeting will be a celebration for the Douglas family with Daryl’s brother Glenn to be crowned Victoria’s leading trainer.
Heading into the Horsham meeting he had 146 Victorian winners for the year, 27 more than reigning title-holder Peter Manning.