Trainer David Thompson holding David Hercules after the geldings Caduceus Club Classic win
Ace reinsman Colin Brown is bubbling with confidence after stylish colt David Hercules drew barrier one in the $50,000 Community Newspapers Western Gateway Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“He’ll obviously lead and will take a power of beating,” he declared. David Hercules was untroubled to lead from the No. 1 barrier when he gave a superb frontrunning display to win the Caduceus Club Classic three weeks ago, rating 1.57.1 in easily beating Lombo Navigator and Grinjaro over 2130m.
Then, a week later, David Hercules started from the inside of the back line in a WA Derby prelude when he wrecked his chances by breaking into a gallop 250m after the start and dropping back to last.
He made up a lot of ground to finish eighth behind Grinjaro, who set the pace from barrier one. The boot is on the other foot this week, with David Hercules drawing the pole position and Grinjaro No. 6.
“If he goes as well as he did in the Caduceus Classic, I think he can win again,” Brown said. “In the Caduceus he ran an exceptional lead time of 35.2sec. without me asking him to go that fast. “So he should hold up and lead again this week.
“At his last start he wasn’t used to that type of situation, being behind the leader and going hard into the first bend. He just got off balance and broke. After galloping he performed very well and then two days later he got home exceptionally well to win a trial at Byford.
“He went back to last and sat there before finishing strongly and going five and six deep on the final bend. He ran very good time on the bit.”
David Hercules won the 2150m trial by a length from Fingal, rating 2.2.5 after covering the final 800m in 58.9sec.
Brown, who drove Demoralizer to victory in the 2003 Western Gateway Pace, respects the opposition and he pointed to Lombo Navigator as being one of the hardest to beat. “Lombo Navigator is a very versatile horse and races like a very good horse,” he said.
Lombo Navigator, an effortless winner at Pinjarra last Monday week, will start from the outside barrier on the front line and looks set to fight out the finish.
Leading trainer Gary Hall sen. will be represented by Why Live Dangerously, who impressed with a strong frontrunning performance to win a 2536m Derby prelude last week. He was driven by Gary Hall jun., who has opted to handle the Ken White-trained Grinjaro this week.
Hall drove Grinjaro when he set the pace and won a Derby prelude easily from Cromac Johnny and Why Live Dangerously last Friday week.
Trevor Warwick has been engaged to drive the speedy and highly-promising Chillin Dylan, who will start from the inside of the back line and should enjoy an ideal trail behind David Hercules.
SPIRIT OF SHARD DROPS A LOT IN CLASS
Veteran pacer Spirit of Shard should appreciate a drop in class and end a losing sequence of 17 by winning the Wanneroo Times Community Claiming Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He put the writing on the wall when he started from 20m and flew home from seventh at the bell to finish a head second to Arma Harris in the 2902m Easter Cup on Thursday of last week.
He will start from the outside barrier (No. 9) in the claiming event this week, but should carry too many guns for his rivals, including the rejuvenated Heeza Hudson, who will start from barrier five and is aiming to record his forth win in a row in claiming company.
“With any sort of luck Spirit of Shard should win,” said trainer Gary Hall sen.
Colin Brown, who drove iron horse Rostriever Ornum to victory over Mevagissey in a 1730m event on Thursday of last week, has decided to handle Touch Me Toes in preference to the Tony Svilicich-trainer Rostriever Ornum.
Brown has driven Touch Me Toes at his past four starts, all in claiming company, for two wins, a second and a fourth.
The powerful Hall father and son combination is hoping for an ounce of luck to enable the talented Bronzwhaler Whitby to make amends for his narrow first-up defeat at the hands of outsider Thrills Ahead last week by winning the Comment News Community Pace.
Bronzwhaler Whitby will start from the outside barrier on the front line in the 1730m event in which he will clash with promising four-year-old Bullets And Bluff.
Last week, Bronzwhaler Whitby also started from barrier nine and was restrained to the rear after racing three wide for the first 250m. He started a three-wide move about 900m from home and sustained a spirited burst to take a narrow lead 20m from the post before Thrills Ahead pipped him on the post.
New Zealand-bred four-year-old Dominating Diomedes has bright prospects of making a successful debut at Gloucester Park when he contests the Canning Times Community Pathway Pace over 2130m on Friday night.
“He’s got speed and a lot of depth,” said Colin Brown who will drive the McArdle gelding for Forrestdale trainer Greg Bond.
“He’s got a wide draw (barrier eight), but he’s got a few strings to his bow and we think we have the horse to cope with the wide draw.”
But Brown hasn’t always been so complimentary, admitting: “I didn’t like him when I first sat behind him in trackwork. He had a leg which didn’t belong to him. But Greg and the farrier have done a great job because the horse is now pacing a hell of a lot better.
“And when they Dolly Vardons go on, he’ll improve. I think we will then get a little bit more out of him.”
Dominating Diomedes, a winner of eight races from 32 starts in New Zealand, has had three starts for Bond and Brown in WA for an unlucky first-up third behind Pacific Black and Shoab at Pinjarra and then stout-hearted efforts for wins at Pinjarra and Harvey at his next two starts.
Dominating Diomedes will clash with another promising New Zealand-bred four-year-old in Awesome Achiever, a winner of seven races from only 11 starts. Awesome Achiever worked hard without cover for much of the way before winning over 2130m at Gloucester Park last Saturday week.
A week earlier, he surged home from eighth at the bell to win over 2130m from the in-form Knot Justafireball.
BONAVISTA BAY READY FOR AMBITIOUS CAMPAIGN
Crack four-year-old Bonavista Bay is spot on for a tilt at major events in Victoria and Auckland in the next few weeks, according to Hazelmere trainer Mike Reed.
The Victorian-owned pacer will leave Perth on Tuesday week and will contest a heat of the Victorian Sires for four-year-old horses and geldings at Kilmore before flying to New Zealand to run in the Messenger Mile and a $100,000 event for four-year-olds over 2700m in Auckland.
After that he will return to Victoria for the semi-finals and final of the Sires. He will be driven in Victoria and New Zealand by top Victorian reinsman Chris Alford.
Reed, who will be away for five weeks campaigning with Bonavista Bay, predicted that the powerfully-built pacer would relish racing in a clockwise direction in New Zealand.
“I have been working him clockwise in this preparation and he certainly goes well in the opposite direction,” Reed said. “He doesn’t hang racing that way, and he also didn’t hang when he had a trial on the spacious Pinjarra track on Sunday (when racing anti-clockwise).”
Driven by Kim Young in the 2170m trial, Bonavista Bay dashed to the front in the first circuit, set a solid pace and careered away to win by just under seven lengths from Total defiance, who had raced on his outside.
Bonavista Bay rated 1.58.1. He covered the final 800m in 56.7sec. and the last 400m in 27.8sec. The winner of the $175,000 Golden Nugget at Gloucester Park last November and the $125,000 McInerney Ford Classic in January, Bonavista Bay has had 24 starts for 15 wins and three placings for earnings of $397,720.
BURNHAM RETURNS AFTER TEN YEARS --- AND WINS
“I’m a bit old to be making a comeback,” grinned a contented Eddie Burnham after driving Location Location to a dashing victory over Six Point Nine and Run Sam Run in the Find Thirty Every Day Pace at Gloucester Park on Tuesday night.
The 59-year-old Burnham was having only his second drive at Gloucester Park and his first on the track since Admirals Rosette finished eleventh behind The Falconer there on March 24, 2000.
Location Location’s victory gave Burnham, a semi-retired hobby trainer at Pinjarra, only his third driving success. His previous wins were with Marfu in a C0 event at Bunbury in February 1992 and with King of Chicago in another C0 event at Bridgetown in April 1995.
The aptly-named Location Location, a Courage Under Fire five-year-old, is trained and raced on lease by Burnham. He leases the gelding from a syndicate from the Bazzo Real Estate group who purchased him for $22,000 as a yearling.
However, the gelding proved to be a handful and he had not even competed in education trials before his connections sent him to be trained by Burnham as a four-year-old last year.
“He was a very lazy horse who used to belt his knees,” Burnham explained. But after a slow and painstaking preparation, Location Location was able to make his debut last September. He now has had ten starts for one win, four placings and $5407 in stakes.
Location Location, favourite with bookmakers at 2/1, returned odds of 7/2 on the tote. He raced in fifth position, three back on the pegs, before Burnham got him into the clear approaching the home turn. The gelding then produced a sizzling finishing burst to overhaul Six Point Nine, who led by almost four lengths with 220m to travel.
Burnham was fined $200 by the stewards for crossing his reins to use the whip with his free right hand.
He also is training nine-year-old Joie de Vivre, who is recovering from tendon damage and a suspensory ligament injury. The gelding, who has won eight races, has not appeared since October 2008.
Location Location is out of Chandon mare Madfish, who won at her debut as a two-year-old at Narrogin in January 2003 and then was retired after being unplaced at her next three starts. Location Location’s ancestry traces back to Bin Oro, a star WA pacer in the 1960s when trained and driven by Alan Woodworth.
Tuesday night’s meeting was highlighted with the success of outsiders, with Flicknflack scoring at tote odds of 55/1, Nicen Shady at 50/1 and In the Zzodiac at 55/1.
Flicknflack, a three-year-old filly having her second start, is trained at North Dandalup by former Kalgoorlie horseman John Doyle; Nicen Shady is prepared at Tammin by David Goulden and In the Zzodiac at Byford by Mario Condipodero.
