Exciting four-year-old Bonavista Bay, touted as Australia’s next superstar and described by trainer Emma Stewart as a freak, is poised to succeed at his first appearance outside Victoria when he contests the XXXX Gold Golden Nugget Prelude No. 2 at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Toughness is one of the stallion’s greatest assets and star Victorian reinsman Chris Alford will not be concerned if Bonavista Bay is forced to work hard without cover in the 2536m event.
Bonavista Bay fared reasonably well in the random barrier draw and will start from the No. 5 position.
Adding tremendous spice to Bonavista Bay’s first appearance in WA will be his clash with highly-regarded New Zealander General Eisenhower, who will be making his Australian debut.
General Eisenhower, trained by Gary Hall sen., will start from the No. 1 barrier and will have many admirers at his first run as a four-year-old. He won in good style at each of his four most recent starts, in June and July of this year.
If General Eisenhower takes full advantage of his inside barrier and leads, Alford will not be worried if Bonavista Bay has to do all the bullocking work in the breeze. Bonavista Bay, who has had 16 starts for 12 wins and three seconds, has raced outside the pacemaker in nine of his 16 races for eight wins and a close second to star New Zealand-bred pacer Tintin In America.
Bonavista Bay’s second to Tintin In America in the $170,000 Australasian Breeders Crown final for three-year-old colts and geldings at Melton on August 23 was one of his finest performances.
He raced three wide for the first lap and then outside the pacemaker, the brilliant Captain Joy, before forging to the front on the home turn before being overhauled by Tintin In America in the final stages. The winner rated 1.56.2 over the mobile 2240m.
Bonavista Bay, the Victorian three-year-old colt/gelding of the year, then had a short let-up and resumed at Melton on October 2 when he raced wide before working hard in the breeze and winning by more than two lengths, rating 1.56.4 over 2240m. He dashed over the final 800m in 56.3sec.
Bonavista Bay’s only other run as a four-year-old was in the 3150m standing-start Kilmore Cup three Sundays ago when he began slowly, raced wide in the middle stages and then took the lead before being overhauled in the final couple of strides by Ohoka Nevada.
General Eisenhower, a winner at seven of his 18 starts in New Zealand, is one of Hall’s two runners in Friday night’s event. Hall will also be represented by highly-promising New Zealand-bred gelding The Pacing Priest.
The Pacing Priest, who has won at six of his 16 starts, Has finished a close second at each of his three starts as a four-year-old, being beaten on each occasion by another New Zealander in Ima Rocket Star. The Pacing Priest has drawn the outside barrier on the front line and should fight out the finish.
JUMBO OPERATOR INJURED AND OUT OF THE NUGGET
Star WA pacer Jumbo Operator is injured and will miss the $175,000 XXXX Gold Golden Nugget championship at Gloucester Park on November 27.
Jumbo Operator, voted WA’s three-year-old pacer of the 2008-09 season, kicked a rail at trainer Ron Huston’s Byford stables a couple of weeks ago and chipped a rear pedal bone.
“He certainly won’t be fit to run in the Nugget,” Huston said. “Hopefully, the injury is not too serious and will mend quickly, giving me the chance to have him ready to run in the McInerney Ford Classic ($125,000) on January 15.”
Huston and reinsman Shannon Suvaljko were bursting with confidence at Jumbo Operator’s prospects in the Nugget before the untimely injury.
Jumbo Operator had won stylishly at his latest three outings, at Gloucester Park in July and August before Huston decided to give the brilliant pacer a short let-up. Jumbo Operator has been most impressive in winning nine times and being placed second twice from his 12 starts.
Huston cast aside the disappointment of Jumbo Operator’s injury by winning with both his starters, Elite Angel and Clifton Roulette, at the Narrogin meeting on Tuesday night.
Peter Tilbrook drove three-year-old Elite Angel to an all-the-way success over the fast-finishing Chelsea Diamond, and Suvaljko adopted frontrunner tactics to score an easy win with Clifton Roulette.
Huston has one starter at Gloucester Park on Friday night, Palomine, one of main fancies in the D’Orsogna Champagne Ham Pace over 2902m.
Palomine, a winner at his past three starts, is part-owned by Victorian businessman Andrew Curran, who is the head of a syndicate which recently purchased two smart pacers from New Zealand, The Cavalier and Dontmakemeangry, each of whom impressed at the Byford trials on Sunday.
Dontmakemeangry, a McArdle four-year-old, has been nominated for a country-front event at Gloucester Park on Saturday night.
He showed that he would be hard to beat at his Australian debut when he raced without cover for much of the way before bursting to the front 400m from home and winning a 2150m trial at Byford on Sunday from the fast-finishing Hi Net Worth. He sprinted the final 400m in 27.8sec.
His only win from ten New Zealand starts was at his most recent appearance when he ran home in 28.4sec. to score by nine lengths in a 2700m mobile event at Cambridge.
The Cavalier, a five-year-old by Christian Cullen, comes to WA with a New Zealand record of 39 starts for 11 wins, eight placings and stakes of $190,142.
The Cavalier raced three back on the pegs in a 2150m trial at Byford on Sunday before Suvaljko sent him to the front on the home turn. He raced away from his rivals to win by four lengths from Argent Treasure, rating 1.57.4.
STRONG TRIAL A POINTER TO ARGENT TREASURE’S PROSPECTS
Stylish grey gelding Argent Treasure is poised to make the sparks fly at his return to racing at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
The five-year-old will be having his first run for seven months when he starts from the No. 2 barrier off the back line in the 1730m D’Orsogna Italian Sprint.
Oakford trainer Ross Olivieri produced Argent Treasure in fine fettle at the Byford trials on Sunday when he worked in impressive fashion.
Trevor Warwick set a hectic pace with Hy Royale and Greg Kersley wisely dropped Argent Treasure back to a conspicuous last, some 50m from the pacemaker. Argent Treasure was seventh (and last) at the bell before he surged home to finish second, four lengths from the winner The Cavalier, who rated a sizzling 1.57.4.
Argent Treasure is drawn behind fast beginner Cuvee Riche on Friday night and he should be able to enjoy a comfortable passage before being asked for a powerful late sprint.
Argent Treasure, winner of the 2007 WA Derby and $292,608 in stakes, is on an M2 mark and Olivieri is keen for the grey to win races in the spring to enhance his prospects of being selected to contest the rich summer carnival feature events.
The best-performed runner in the Italian Sprint is M5-class pacer Hy Royale, who is now being trained by Katja Schreyvogel. Hy Royale, who has been off the scene for two months, set a scorching pace in Sunday’s trial and did well to fight on to finish third, five lengths from the winner.
Hy Royale, who has had 56 starts for 16 wins, 13 placings and stakes of $187,800, will start from the outside barrier (No. 9) on Friday night.
WHITE TO BE de CAMPO’S No. 1 STABLE DRIVER
Matt White, one of New Zealand’s best young reinsmen, will move to Western Australia in four weeks to take up the post of stable foreman for Andrew de Campo at his Capel establishment.
The 25-year-old White, the north island’s leading driver for several years before graduating to senior ranks last year, will also become de Campo’s No. 1 stable driver.
“He’s been working and driving for John Green in Auckland, but with only two meetings a week has had limited opportunities,” de Campo explained.
“I have 30 horses in work and here he should be able to have at least ten drives a week.”
White came to WA to gain experience with de Campo for about four weeks in the winter of 2004 when he had 11 drives, eight at Gloucester Park and two at Pinjarra. His best result was a third with So Gorgeous at Gloucester Park.
When White was in WA in 2004, one of de Campo’s protégées, Ryan Bell, travelled to Auckland to gain experience with Green at his Auckland training establishment.
De Campo has been an outstanding reinsman, but in recent years has concentrated almost exclusively on training. His teenage son Aiden recently drove his first winner. He is an apprentice sheet metal worker and will continue to gain experience as a reinsman as well as playing football for Carey Park.
