Seeryanfly ready for important challenge
Seeryanfly is ready to shine at his first appearance at Gloucester Park for six months when he faces the significant challenge of a considerable rise in class when he contests the group 3 $30,000 Simmonds Steel Im Themightyquinn Pace on Friday night.
The WA-bred four-year-old has come through an unusual preparation for this 2130m mobile feature event with flying colours --- beginning from back marks in stands on country tracks at his first four starts for outstanding young trainer-reinsman Dylan Egerton-Green.
He has revealed excellent natural speed and strength to score easy wins in those four stands, the first two over 2503m at Bunbury, followed by victories over 2636m at Narrogin and over 2560m at Northam.
Seeryanfly warmed up for this week’s assignment in fine style at Northam last Saturday night when he galloped off the 40m mark before making up lost ground quickly and bursting to the front after a lap and going on to win easily by two and a half lengths from Texas Tara.
His most recent appearance at Gloucester Park was in a 2130m mobile on December 27 when he raced in the one-out, two-back position before starting a three-wide move, with cover, 950m from home when he was eighth at the 500m and finished strongly to hit the front on the home turn and win by a half-length from Hav Ago Joe, rating 1.57.4.
A week earlier, he raced in the one-out, one-back position before finishing strongly to be second to the pacemaker Ezana.
Seeryanfly, who will start from the No. 3 barrier on the front line on Friday night, is bred to be a good winner. He is by American sire Heston Blue Chip and is out of Brush With Courage, who had nine starts as a two and three-year-old in 2010 for three wins, two seconds and $33,895. Brush With Courage is a full-sister to Heez On Fire (52 starts for 20 wins, eight placings and $287,607) and is a half-sister to Papinik (23 starts for 13 wins, seven placings and $132,493).
One of Seeryanfly’s main rivals on Friday night will be Ezana, a winner at nine of his 21 starts. He will start from the No. 5 barrier and will be handled by Emily Suvaljko, who replaces Egerton-Green who has driven the New Zealand-bred four-year-old at his past five starts for three wins, a second and a fading eighth behind Talks Up A Storm in the Pure Steel Pace last Friday night when he set the pace and was tackled hard for much of the 2130m journey.
Ezana is trained at Mt Helena by Ray Williams, who has a good second string in another New Zealand-bred four-year-old in Stamford, who has won at ten of his 17 starts. He will be driven by Aiden de Campo from barrier seven.
Leading trainers Greg and Skye Bond will be represented by Socrates and Markham Eyre. Colin Brown has been engaged to handle Socrates, who will start from barrier four, and Ryan Warwick will drive Markham Eyre from the inside of the back line.
Socrates maintained his excellent form when he finished with a spirited three-wide burst from seventh at the bell to finish third behind Talks Up A Storm last Friday night. He raced without cover when a fighting second to Glenledi Chief the previous week. Markham Eyre impressed when he set the pace and dashed over the final 400m in 26.9sec. and won easily from Arma Einstein over 2185m at Pinjarra on Monday.
The Ryan Bell-trained Soundwave is racing in wonderful form, and he caught the eye last Friday night when he finished boldly, out four wide, from ninth at the bell to be second to Talks Up A Storm.
Magnificent Storm all set to go
Brilliant five-year-old Magnificent Storm is poised to resume after a 19-week absence in winning form, following a solid workout in a 2150m Byford trial on Sunday morning.
The lightly-raced American Ideal gelding will be driven by Aiden de Campo when he starts from the No. 2 barrier in the $30,000 Etch Coatings Free-For-All at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
De Campo, who replaces the injured Aldo Cortopassi, drove Magnificent Storm in the four-horse trial in which he started from the No. 1 barrier, led for the first 150m and then sat behind Athabascan before regaining the lead after a lap and going on to win by 2m from the nine-year-old Athabascan, rating 1.59.7 after final quarters of 28.7sec. and 28.2sec.
Magnificent Storm, prepared by Mt Helena trainer Ray Williams, has enjoyed a beneficial spell since he finished a close fourth behind Wildwest in the 2936m WA Pacing Cup on February 4 when he settled in 11TH position and surged home from ninth at the bell with a three and four-wide burst.
Interestingly, Magnificent Storm will clash for the first time in a race with his talented stablemate To Fast To Serious, who will start from the outside in the field of six and will be driven by Dylan Egerton-Green.
To Fast To Serious bounced back to his best form last Friday night when he raced without cover before getting to the front 220m from home and winning easily from Double Up over 2130m when the final quarters whizzed by in 28.5sec. and 27.8sec.
De Campo has bright prospects of winning the opening event on Friday night when he drives his own nomination Dominus Factum in the 2130m Simmonds Steel Fencing And Gates Pace.
Four-year-old Dominus Factum, the youngest and least experienced runner in the race, will be having his first start after a 19-week absence. A winner at 12 of his 37 starts, the American Ideal gelding will begin from barrier three.
He led and won at Pinjarra and Gloucester Park in January towards the end of his previous campaign, but it is problematical whether he will set the pace in Friday night’s event, with capable frontrunners Medieval Man and Whoswhointhezoo drawn inside of him.
Medieval Man, trained by Kiara Davies, will start from barrier two and will be driven by Emily Suvaljko. The five-year-old’s most recent victory was eight starts ago, on January 14, when he led from barrier three and beat Woswhointhezoo.
Whoswhointhezoo, a giant eight-year-old, bred, owned and trained by Karen Thompson, is one of the most frequent visitors to Gloucester Park, having raced there at 123 of his 148 starts. He has a losing sequence of 35 but has impressed with strong finishing efforts at several of his recent outings.
He has begun from the No. 1 barrier at 12 of his 123 Gloucester Park appearances for one win (when he led and beat Tyler Brett by a neck, rating 1.57.9 over 2130m on April 24, 2018), two seconds and three thirds. The most recent time he has set the pace was 30 starts ago when he led until the final 350m and finished fourth behind Jaspervellabeach on September 17 last year.
Dominus Factum’s main danger looms large as Euphoria, who is racing keenly with placings at four of his past five starts. The five-year-old trained by Gary Hall snr has the ability and race fitness to overcome the disadvantage of starting from the outside barrier (No. 9) on the front line.
Between Two Thorns sure to improve
Former outstanding trainer-reinsman Andrew de Campo has fond memories of driving 11/2 chance Highest Honour to victory in the group 1 McInerney Ford Classic in December 2000 --- and thoughts of that notable triumph will be rekindled when he watches his son Aiden drive Between Two Thorns in the $25,000 Etch Coatings Western Crown for two-year-old fillies at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Between Two Thorns, trained in Capel by Aiden de Campo, is the fifth foal out of the unraced American-bred Kiwi Rose, whose dam Tupelo Rose was the 2/1 favourite in the 2000 McInerney Ford Classic and disappointed her champion Victorian trainer and driver Ted Demmler in finishing fourth behind Highest Honour.
After winning 12 times in New Zealand and 12 races in Australia, including the 2000 Queensland and Victorian Oaks, Tupelo Rose went to America and won several more times. Kiwi Rose did not race and was sent to New South Wales in June 2011 as a brood mare.
Between Two Thorns resumed after a spell last Friday night when she enjoyed an ideal passage in the one-out, one-back position before she burst to the front 520m from home and led by three lengths on the home turn and ten wilted to finish third behind Zephyra and Spiritofanangel over 2130m.
Between Two Thorns was a winner on debut, beating Cabsav and Spiritofanangel in a heat of the WA Sales Classic in February, but she hit a wheel, broke and dropped back to finish last behind Cabsav in the final. She then went for a spell and resumed last Friday night.
She is sure to be improved by her first-up effort and looks set to fight out the finish of Friday night’s event with the Terry Keenan-trained Spiritofanangel, who will be handled by Nathan Turvey.
Spiritofanangel will start from barrier five, with Between Two Thorns unfavourably draw on the outside in the field of seven. Valhalla Angel (barrier one) and Ekara Navajo (two) have good gate speed, and there is likely to be a keen battle for the early lead.
There are only four runners in the $25,000 Simmonds Steel Western Crown for two-year-old colts and geldings, and the 1730m event looks likely to develop into a keen duel between the polemarker Hotly Pursued (Kyle Harper) and Fess Up (Ryan Warwick). Each pacer will be attempting to complete a hat-trick of wins.
Fess Up will start from the outside barrier and is capable of mustering good early pace. The Bettors Delight colt, trained by Greg and Skye Bond, began from barrier six, dashed to the front after 70m and then set the pace before winning by more than two lengths from Cold Hard Cash over 1684m at Pinjarra on Monday of last week. He led from barrier one and won convincingly from Bronzed over 2185m the previous Monday.
Hotly Pursued is trained by Murray Lindau and will be driven by Kyle Harper, who is sure to be anxious to take full advantage of the coveted No. 1 barrier over the sprint journey.
Hotly Pursued led from barrier three and won by three lengths from Tantabiddi over 1684m at Pinjarra two starts ago and then enjoyed the one-out, one-back trail before finishing strongly to win by a length from Juggernaut over 2130m at Gloucester Park four Fridays ago.
Trainer-driver Jocelyn Young has driven Ronald Scott to easy victories at Pinjarra and Narrogin at his past two starts. The Bonavista Bay gelding faces a rise in class at his first appearance at Gloucester Park.
In The Spotlight set four in a row
Talented New Zealand-bred filly In The Spotlight looks too strong for her six West Australian-bred fillies in the $20,250 Simmonds Steel Laser and Tube Cutting Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night and she should be the star bet on the ten-event program.
Leading trainers Greg and Skye Bond have given In The Spotlight a solid preparation for this event, starting the filly against older and more experienced geldings at her past two starts --- for wins at Gloucester Park and Pinjarra, following a runaway victory against five colts and geldings and three fillies at Kellerberrin.
She will start from the No. 2 barrier on Friday night, and star reinsman Ryan Warwick will be keen to take advantage of her good gate speed in a bid for an all-the-way victory.
In The Spotlight gave a sample of her ability at Pinjarra on Monday when she proved the master of eight older and more experienced geldings, rating 1.55 over 1684m in beating Rockstar Rebel by a half-length. The final 400m sections were covered in 28.6sec. and 27.8sec.
In The Spotlight started from barrier three and settled down in sixth position before Warwick sent her forward after 450m to race in the breeze before she surged clear of the opposition 80 metres from the post.
At her previous outing, over 2130m at Gloucester Park, In The Spotlight set the pace and beat the promising gelding Hillview Bondi, who had won at four of his five previous starts. She rated a smart 1.56.6.
The sparks are set to fly in the third event, the 2130m Simmonds Steel Industrial and Mining Fabrication Pace, when talented New Zealand-bred pacers Ragazzo Mach and Typhoon Banner clash.
Four-year-old Ragazzo Mach, to be driven by Shannon Suvaljko for trainer Mike Reed, has an apparent advantage in starting from the No. 2 barrier, with Typhoon Banner at barrier No. 5. Both pacers are blessed with good gate speed, and trainer Dylan Egerton-Green could be planning to send Typhoon Banner forward early in a bid to wrest the lead from Ragazzo Mach, who will be having his first start for six weeks.
Ragazzo Mach worked hard without cover when a half-head second to Beat City over 2130m on May 6 when having his first start since he faced the breeze and won from Star Of Willoughby on February 4.
Typhoon Banner is in tremendous form and will have a legion of supporters. He notched his third win from his past four starts when he trailed the pacemaker Lord Rosco and finished with a powerful burst to beat Heez Our Perseus and Ideal Agent at a 1.57.2 rate over 2130m. He trailed the leader before winning from Eldaytona and Heez Our Perseus at his previous start.
