Experienced New Zealand-bred pacer Lincoln River will have many admirers when he makes his WA debut in the 1730m Fireworks At Midnight Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He will be driven by Abbey Vidovich for Oakford trainer Jemma Hayman and will begin from an awkward barrier at No. 6 on the front line. But he looks capable of a bold showing following an excellent performance in a 2150m trial at Byford last Saturday.
Lincoln River began smartly from the outside barrier in the field of five and settled down three back on the pegs, with open-class pacer Hotly Pursued taking up the running and then being retired after a lap.
This left Lincoln River trailing the frontrunning Flying Felix before Vidovich eased him off the pegs 550m from home and sent him to the front 200m later before he careered away to win by six and a half lengths from Flying Felix after sprinting over the final 400m in 27.8sec.
Five-year-old Linclon River had 41 starts in New Zealand for five wins and then raced 27 times in Victoria for two wins from 27 starts. He has a losing sequence of 17, including only one placing, a second to Justalittlesip over 2240m at Melton on July 12 this year when he led early from barrier two and then took the sit behind Dhaulagiri. He fought on to finish two lengths behind Justalittlesip, who rated 1.55.2 after final quarters of 28.5sec. and 28.3sec.
Lincoln River’s most recent victory was in the 2612m Boort Cup early last March when he enjoyed an ideal passage in the one-out and one-back position before running home solidly to finish second, a length behind the pacemaker and $2.20 favourite Collective Works, who was disqualified after racing inside the marker pegs for a brief while after 400m.
Lincoln River’s toughest rival is likely to be the Michael Young-trained Ambitsiya, who will begin from barrier five with Emily Suvaljko in the sulky at her second start after a spell.
The four-year-old Ambitsiya resumed after a five-month absence in a 2190m event at Northam last Saturday night when she was the $1.65 favourite from the inside of the back line. She raced four back on the pegs where she ruined her chances by pulling hard.
Suvaljko got Ambitsiya off the inside 900m from home and the mare was forced five wide in the back straight before battling on, out very wide, to finish eighth, three lengths behind the pacemaker Spudmeister.
The WA-bred Ambitsiya is lightly raced, with her 14 starts producing five wins and two thirds. She has been unplaced at her past five starts (after breaking in running in two of those races), but she has wonderful potential and is capable of a powerful second-up performance.
