Very Pretty Photo by Stuart McCormick
THIS should be the night Mark Pitt grabs the lead in the quest to successfully defend his Victorian Metropolitan Drivers’ title.
Pitt cleared out to win last year by 20 wins, beating Kate Gath, who had won the previous two titles.
Gath has led much of this year and heads to Melton’s huge Breeders Crown meeting on Saturday night with a two-win advantage of Pitt. Gath has 49 wins, Pitt is on 47 and Greg Sugars close behind on 45.
But Pitt has by far the best set of drives on Saturday night with four favourites at $2 or shorter and a $4.20 second favourite.
Gath’s best drive is $5.50 chance Outlaw Man in race two, while Sugars’ most favoured drive is $4.80 chance Shaq The Anvil in the third event.
Pitt’s best drives are: Very Pretty ($1.60), Oliver Dan ($1.80), Major Delight ($2) and Treachery ($1.50).
All are trained by Stewart and Pitt does the bulk of her stable driving.
Stewart has the ammunition to repeat last year’s record-breaking six win Breeders Crown night haul at Melton on Saturday.
She won six of the 10 races, including four Group 1’s last year and despite not having the quantity of runners this year, the betting markets say she has at least the same quality.
Six of the 11 races on Saturday night have Stewart-trained runners as clear favourites.
That’s remarkable considering her 19 runners are only spread across those six races.
Stewart has the first three favourites in both finals for the three-year-old pacing fillies and the decider for the three-year-old pacing colts and geldings.
In the fillies’, Major Delight ($2) is trying to make it 16 wins from just 19 starts, while stablemates Joyful ($2.80 into $2.20) and Sweet Bella ($4 to $5) are the only genuine dangers.
The colts and geldings’ looks a match in two between Oliver Dan ($2.20 into $1.80) and Perfect Class ($2 to $2.30), while their stablemate Our Vinnie ($18) is next in betting.
The clash between Stewart’s unbeaten two-year-old fillies Very Pretty ($1.60, gate two) and Draw A Dream ($2.70, gate three) will be one of the highlights of the night.
Very Pretty has won all four starts, while David Moran will partner Draw A Dream, who is six from six. Stewart also has $51 outsider Eureka Jo in that final.
In the colts and geldings’ final, Moran partners $1.80 favourite Timmy Rictor from gate five, while Pitt is aboard Stormryder (gate two).
Stewart’s other three runners in that final are: Kingman ($7), Some American ($21) and War Dan Buddy ($61).
Her first runner of the day comes up in race two, the Melton City Sprint, where veteran Like A Wildfire, to be driven by Luke McCarthy, has been crunched from $4 into $2.20 from barrier one.
In the final race of the night, star mare Treachery is a $1.50 favourite despite a wide draw (gate seven) and looks a class above her rivals in the Breeders Crown Mares’ free-for-all.
· Adam Hamilton is a paid contributor writing on harness racing for News Corp.
