Catch A Wave dispels a myth
Brilliant, lightly-raced five-year-old Catch A Wave dispelled a widely-held myth that he was suspect over long distances when he gave a dazzling display of sheer speed on his way to winning the $300,000 Retravision Fremantle Cup at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Not only did Catch A Wave charge home from the rear to beat the bold pacemaker Jumpingjackmac, but he broke the track record for the marathon 2936m, eclipsing the 1.55.8 rate set by the mighty stayer Smolda when he stormed to victory over Hectorjajay in the Interdominion Championship final in December 2016.
Catch A Wave, prepared in superb condition by ace Victorian trainer Andy Gath and driven in dashing style by his wife Kate, rated 1.55.7, with his victory boosting his record to 38 starts for 22 wins, seven placings and earnings of $1,971,848.
Before he won the 2536m Nullarbor slot race the previous week Catch A Wave had not been successful over a distance beyond 2240m.
“That was most satisfying,” said Andy Gath after Catch A Wave’s Fremantle Cup victory. Catch A Wave gets bagged a lot because they (his detractors) say he can’t stay. And tonight, he also showed how much brilliance he’s got.
“I was not worried when he was so far back. He was travelling when Kate pulled him out. The tempo had been solid and I reckoned he would be right in the race. He hadn’t done any work, and I knew he would finish off pretty well. Kate had to make a decision to go because Tenzing Bromac was getting in the way a little bit.”
Gath said that Catch A Wave would now return to Victoria and have a couple of weeks off before resuming training. “His main mission will be the Len Smith Mile at Menangle in the first week of September after going around in a couple of races at Melton in the lead-up,” he said.
After Friday night’s Fremantle Cup, the stewards fined Kate Gath $400 for careless driving and causing contact with the off-side sulky of Tenzing Bromac and puncturing the tyre in the back straight in the final lap.
The stewards also concluded an inquiry into a racing incident on the home turn in the Nullarbor slot race the previous Friday night. Gath pleaded guilty to a charge of contributing to interference when Catch A Wave moved inwards when not properly clear of Never Ending.
Catch A Wave’s foreleg contacted Never Ending’s sulky, causing that pacer to race roughly, which resulted in Jumpingjackmac being checked and two other horses being inconvenienced. Gath received a 12-day suspension.
Course patrons were shocked when Lavra Joe, the favourite for the Fremantle Cup, was scratched 18 minutes before the start of the race.
This resulted in Minstrel being sent out as the $3.30 favourite, ahead of Catch A Wave and Hot And Treacherous, both quoted at $4.60, and Pinny Tiger at $8.50.
Chris Voak fired out Pinny Tiger from barrier four straight to the lead before he wisely surrendered the front to $13 chance Jumpingjackmac after 250 metres.
Kate Gath restrained Catch A Wave (from barrier six) to the rear, and the gelding settled down in tenth position.
Stuart McDonald aimed to make life difficult for the opposition by setting a fast pace, with the opening quarters of the final mile being run in 28.8sec. and 29sec. before the last 400m sections were run in 28.6sec. and 29.1sec.
Jumpingjackmac was joined in the lead by Minstrel after a lap, with Pinny Tiger enjoying a perfect passage behind the pacemaker, and Swingband ($15) racing in the one-out, one-back position.
Gath eased Catch A Wave three wide from the rear with about 900m to travel, and this flushed out Tenzing Bromac and provided Catch A Wave with a favourable three-wide trail. Catch A Wave then revealed a sizzling burst of speed, out four wide, 500m from home and the gelding burst to the front 280m later before going on to win by a neck from the gallant Jumpingjackmac.
Pinny Tiger finished fast to be a close third, just a nose ahead of $41 chance Mighty Ronaldo, who was last on the pegs 300m from home and seventh at the 100m before getting into the clear and flashing home out wide. Minstrel wilted late after his tough run in the breeze and finished ninth.
“Jumpingjackmac went super; his run was enormous,” said an admiring McDonald. “He is now such a good horse, and you can drive him with confidence. He has won $850,000 and has finished second six times in group 1 events, without winning one.
“After the scratching of Lavra Joe the plan was to lead. I copped a bit of mid-race pressure I didn’t expect, and I thought that at the 600m Jumpingjackmac wouldn’t run anywhere. But he kept fighting.”
Deni Roberts said that the fast pace proved the undoing of Minstrel, explaining: “The lead time was fast, and Stuey drove a very good race, and there was no way Minstrel could have beaten Jumpingjackmac, running those sort of times.”
Kate Gath said that she pulled out with Catch A Wave when she did because she had no choice. “I was hoping to get around Tenzing Bromac before the others came,” she said. “He was just bolting during the race.”
Catch A Wave returns to Victoria after having amassed $673,718 from his two wins and one fourth placing from his three starts in WA.
Bet The House is a Derby hope
“He is as good a chance I have of winning a Derby with,” said star reinsman Chris Voak after driving Bet The House to a splendid victory in the group 3 $50,000 Caduceus Club Classic at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“He has the tenacity and mental strength to win the WA Derby later this year,” said Voak who drove a tactically perfect race to guide the $7.30 chance to a decisive half-length win over Waverider ($5), rating a smart 1.54.9 over the 2130m.
Voak’s tactics paid off when Bet The House was at the rear of the field in the one-wide line soon after the start, with Waverider out three wide.
“When I saw the driver of Waverider (Kyle Symington) on the first bend looking like he was going forward, and then looking over to his left in a hope of getting to the one-wide line, I took a little hold of my horse and created a gap for Waverider,” said Voak.
“Tactically, it was a good manoeuvre. I was then able to follow Waverider in the one-wide line before getting the cart-up, three wide, on him.”
Symington eased Waverider three wide with 1050m to travel, and the colt got to the front 500m from home before Bet The House sustained a determined burst to take the lead in the closing stages and defeat Waverider.
“Bet The House was in for the fight,” said Voak.
Bet The House is not paid up to contest the Pearl Classic for three-year-olds on May 24, with part-owner and trainer Ron Huston concentrating on other feature events.
“He will now go to the paddock for a month before getting ready for the Westbred races and the WA Derby later in the year,” said Huston.
“Bet The House is an amazing horse. He has had a few little issues with illness, and how he has come on over the past eight weeks has been a bit of a miracle. Eight weeks ago, we were at the crossroads, whether he was going to be able to make it back to the races. But we found the key to him.”
For Huston Friday night’s win gave him his second success in the Caduceus Club Classic, following Jumbo Operator’s victory in 2009.
“There is a distinct difference between the two horses,” said Huston. “Jumbo Operator was so brilliant whereas Bet the House is just a work horse. He is probably the best horse I’ve had since Jumbo. He is very strong and is very fast as well.”
Jumbo Operator was retired with a fine record of 43 starts for 24 wins, eight seconds and one third for stakes of $313,175. Bet The House has already earned $105,182 from five wins and two placings from eight starts.
Opal Hunter, the $2.35 favourite in Friday night’s race, was beaten out from barrier one and raced three back on the pegs before finishing sixth.
Lusaka stakes his claim
Talented pacer Lusaka warmed up for a tilt at next Friday night’s $50,000 Four and Five-Year-Old Championship with a strong win in the 2130m Retravision, Lowest Price Guarantee Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Lusaka, owned and trained by Greg and Skye Bond, was a hot $1.40 favourite from the outside barrier (No. 9) on the front line, and was driven patiently by Deni Roberts, who was happy to race at the rear while $14 chance Ideal Tomado was setting a brisk pace, with Post Game ($8) applying plenty of pressure in the breeze.
Lusaka sustained a strong run to come from the rear at the bell and take the lead 250m from home before winning by just over a length from Post Game, who put up a grand performance to fight on with great determination.
Lusaka rated 1.55.8 and improved his record to 23 starts for 12 wins, six placings and $142,659. He won at his only appearance in New Zealand (as a two-year-old at Addington in July 2022) before arriving in Western Australia.
He is by Sweet Lou and is the fourth foal out of the Bettors Delight mare Batini (two wins and $11,336 from 41 starts).
Harper does it again
Veteran-trainer-reinsman Lindsay Harper adopted similar tactics two weeks in a row to bring about the downfall of the well-fancied Greg and Skye Bond-trained Jett Star in 2130m events at Gloucester Park.
He caused an upset on Friday night when he brought $9.80 chance Middlepage home with a strong burst to get up in the final couple of strides to beat the $3.50 second fancy Jett Star by a half-length in the $21,000 RAC Members Save 5% Every Day at Retravision Pace.
Seven-year-old Middlepage began from the No. 1 barrier and was beaten out by the $2.70 favourite The Code Breaker from the No. 2 barrier. Deni Roberts quickly moved Jett Star into the breeze while Middlepage enjoyed a perfect sit behind the pacemaker.
Jett Star eventually got to the front 250m from home but was unable to hold out the strong-finishing Middlepage, who rated 1.55.8 after the final three quarters were run in 29sec., 27.5sec. and 28.9sec. Machlani ($81) ran on well to finish third, with The Code Breaker fading to seventh.
“I was planning to lead but Middlepage didn’t have the speed to hold The Code Breaker out,” said Harper. Middlepage, a WA-bred seven-year-old by Tintin In America, has been a wonderful money spinner for Harper and his co-owners, having raced 96 times for 18 wins, 21 placings and $182,952 in prizemoney.
A week earlier Harper drove $26.70 outsider Eldaytona to a half-length win over the $3 favourite Jett Star, who had taken the lead with 270m travel.
Mixed luck for Hall
It was a case of mixed fortune for champion horseman Gary Hall jnr in the $23,000 Retravision, Buy Now, Pay Later Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night when he trained two of the runners (Solesseo Matuca and Regal Cheval) and drove the $2.70 favourite Ira Poole for his father, champion trainer Gary Hall snr.
Ira Poole set the pace from barrier two after Regal Cheval ($41) had led in the early stages, with Stuart McDonald settling Solesseo Matuca ($8.80) in sixth position in the field of eight.
Franco Ecuador raced in the breeze and got his nose in front on the home turn before $3 second fancy Rolling Fire came from the one-out, one-back position to take the lead in the straight. Solesseo Matuca then finished fast to snatch victory by a half-head from Rolling Fire.
“It was a funny run race with the ones up the front not going at their best which helped us, as well as Rolling Fire was having his first start for seven weeks,” said McDonald.
“Solesseo Matuca travelled well all the way and showed the benefit of racing every week.” Solesseo Matuca’s 12 starts in WA have produced three wins and five placings, taking his record to 57 starts for 13 wins, 23 placings and stakes of $286,541.
After the race it was discovered that Ira Poole (who had wilted to finish sixth) was suffering from lameness in an off-side leg.
Acharne Girl comes from last
WA-bred five-year-old Acharne Girl enhanced her prospects in next Friday night’s group 3 WASBA Breeders Stakes with a dashing last-to-first win in the 2130m Retravision, For All Your Electrical Stuff You Love Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
She was the $1.70 favourite from wide at barrier No. 8 and Gary Hall jnr was confident as he bided his time at the rear before asking her for an effort. She responded by sustaining a strong three-wide burst which carried her to the front on the home turn on the way to winning by a length from the $14 pacemaker Let it Linga, rating 1.56.3.
Acharne Girl, trained by Gary Hall snr, has been a consistent performer who boasts a record of 27 starts for ten wins, six placings and $153,674.
“From barrier eight I thought her best chance was to drop back,” explained Hall jnr. “I expected it would take a while for the rest of the field to sort themselves out, and this would suit me. Her two previous runs had put the writing on the wall.”
600 up for Roberts
Outstanding driver Deni Roberts landed the third leg of a treble and notched her 600TH career victory when she guided the $1.10 favourite Steel The Show to a comfortable win in the $25,000 Memorial Day Stakes at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Steel The Show, a New Zealand-bred seven-year-old by Bettors Delight, was not extended over the 2536m trip in which he ran the opening quarters of the final mile in 30.9sec. and 30sec. before increasing the tempo with final 400m sections of 28.4sec. and 27.4sec.
He won by a length from $18 chance To Fast To Serious, who raced three back on the pegs in fifth position before sprinting home strongly.
“Steel The Show is a bit lazy, but he does what he has to,” said Roberts. “This milestone is pretty cool, particularly to achieve it at Gloucester Park and with one of the stable’s runners.”
Steel The Show, prepared by champion trainers Greg and Skye Bond, has earned $359,683 from 14 wins and 29 placings from 65 starts. He won six times in New Zealand and has been driven by Roberts in all of his 21 WA starts for eight wins and four placings.
The 28-year-old Roberts ended Friday night’s meeting with a record of 5408 drives for 600 wins, 1291 placings and stakes of $6,999,248. Her first 222 drives this season have produced 49 wins and 66 placings.
A hood does the trick
Pinjarra trainer Chris Voak’s decision to use hood type blinkers on Per Ardua Ad Astra had the desired effect when Chris Lewis got the six-year-old away speedily from the No. 3 barrier before setting a solid pace and winning easily from the fast-finishing Wall Street Girl in the 1730m Retravision, Click’N’Collect Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“I needed to sharpen him up,” said Voak, who was pleased with the way the gelding responded to racing with a hood.
Per Ardua Ad Astra was a solidly supported $3.20 second favourite behind the polemarker and $2.60 fancy Wall Street Girl, who failed to take advantage of the No. 1 barrier by being badly beaten for early speed.
Wall Street Girl was seventh in the field of eight at the bell before being switched three wide at the 700m and then racing four wide at the 400m. After a 28.8sec. third quarter Wall Street Girl sprinted solidly when the final 400m was covered in 29.1sec.
Lewis was pleased with the result, saying: “Over a mile everything worked out perfectly. I was able to rate Per Ardua Ad Astra along, and I thought we had enough in reserve in the late stages to hold our lead. It might have been different over 2130m.”
Per Ardua Ad Astra’s win ended a losing sequence of 16 and took his record to 82 starts for ten wins and 22 placings for stakes of $91,693. He is by Follow The Stars and is the fourth foal out of the unraced Blissfull Hall mare World Peace.
Per Ardua Ad Astra is a full-brother to recent WA country winners Travelban and See The World.
A rare Miller moment
It was a rare sight at Gloucester Park when 34-year-old Coolup horseman Dean Miller donned the pink and purple racing silks to drive promising two-year-old filly Poppys Last Dance in the last event, the Retravision Online Pace, on Friday night.
And Miller enjoyed the trip from the country as he guided Poppys Last Dance, the $2.20 favourite, to victory by a neck over Purely Pandemic ($5.50) and the pacemaker Allizee ($10).
Miller was unable to recall his previous drive at a Gloucester Park city meeting, and he thought that One For Sassy gave him his previous city training and driving success when that gelding beat Rockin The Boys in a 2130m MO event on March 9, 2018.
“I’ve given the driving away, mostly,” he explained. “I’ve been concentrating on breaking and educating young horses, and at the moment I have 24 under my care.
“I’m training just one pacer --- Poppys Last Dance, who is owned by Clint Pearce, who bred the pacer with his late father Ross, thus the name of this filly.”
Poppy Last Dance is by American sire Betting Line and is the fourth foal out of the Christian Cullen mare Lagoon Express, who raced 70 times for four wins, 17 placings and $32,998.
Lagoon Express is a half-sister to Thejewelinhereye, who was broken in by Miller several years ago before racing 169 times for 28 drivers for 14 wins, 29 placings and $104,316.
“I’m too busy and just don’t have the hours to drive in races,” said Miller. “Tonight, we went back (from barrier three) to the fence and was stuck in last place until I was able to work my way off the inside down the back, and then returned to the pegs before Poppys Last Dance finished strongly.”
Poppys Last Dance dashed to the front in the final 50m and won in good style, rating 2.0.3 over 2130m, with a final quarter of 29.2sec. This took her record to two starts for one win and one second and stakes of $13,627.
Gift horse Joey James salutes
Birchmont trainer Brad Lynn has never lost faith in his dependable seven-year-old pacer Joey James, who was bred and is raced by his wife Katrina and caused an upset as a $47.30 outsider when Deni Roberts drove him to victory in the $21,000 Retravision.com.au Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
The victory took Joey James’s record to 81 starts for eleven wins, 23 placings and $109,258 in prizemoney --- not a bad return for a horse bred from a free stallion service and from a gift mare.
“I got a free service to an unfashionable American sire Heartland Hanover and was given Soho Honolulu, an unraced Bettors Delight mare, as a gift when she was about to be retired,” said Lynn.
“Jesse Moore had Soho Honolulu, who was not good enough to race, and after looking at her breeding I decided to accept her as a gift.”
Soho Honolulu was out of Jupiters Darling, a very good mare trained by Moore who won the Sales Classic for two-year-old fillies at Gloucester Park in February 2005 and was retired with a record of 84 starts for 14 wins, 22 placings and $142,792.
Lynn named Joey James after his well-performed pacer Walter James (117 starts for 13 wins, 24 placings and $127,011).
“Walter James and Joey James look similar, and they both have nasty attitudes and are quite aggressive,” said Lynn.
“Deni has been driving Joey James, because our son Toby has not yet received a licence to drive at metropolitan-class meetings. And Deni said that Joey James had been flying in recent starts and predicted a strong showing tonight.”
Joey James trailed the pacemaker and $1.70 favourite Machs Bettor in Friday night’s race before Roberts eased him off the pegs 320m from home. Joey James sprinted strongly and hit the front in the final stride to defeat the $3.70 second fancy Brickies Dream by a half-head, with Loucid Dreams ($17) close up in third place after racing wide early and then in the one-out and one-back position.
