Star driver Emily Suvaljko notched her 800TH winner when she brought My Watchlist home with a powerful burst in the $21,000 Vale Peter Blaszczak Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
She completed a double when Majestic Ga Ga was successful later in the program, and a double with the Michael Young-trained Eclipse Line ($1.30) and Butter Me Up ($1.10) at Albany on Saturday night took her season’s tally to 133.
With the final meeting of the year at Gloucester Park on Wednesday night the 25-year-old Suvaljko is assured of finishing second to Gary Hall jnr (173 winners) on the WA premiership table.
This is Suvaljko’s eighth season as a driver, and she has already chalked up a century of winners five times. Her best year was 2021 when she drove 176 winners and finished second to Hall (228).
“My goal this season was to run second to Gary, who is the best driver in the State,” said Suvaljko.
Suvaljko was engaged to drive My Watchlist, trained by Gary Hall snr, for the first time after Hall jnr opted to handle his own nomination Nathan Street, who was the $2.65 favourite from out wide at barrier eight. My Watchlist was the $6.40 third favourite from the No. 4 barrier.
My Watchlist, a lightly-raced New Zealand-bred six-year-old, settled down in seventh position in the one-wide line while the polemarker Era ($23) was setting the pace after surviving an early challenge from $8.50 chance Fat Louie after recording a fast lead time of 35.6sec.
Hall jnr sent Nathan Street forward with a three-wide burst soon after the start and the talented but somewhat erratic four-year-old moved to the breeze after 550m. The opening quarters were run comfortably in 31.1sec. and 29.8sec.
Nathan Street looked certain to win when he surged to the front with 400m to travel, but he broke into a bad gallop on the home turn and dropped back to finish eighth. My Watchlist, after being switched out wide 250m from home, went to the front 120m from the post and won by a length from the fast-finish $20 chance Quinton, rating 1.56.9 after final 400m sections of 28.2sec. and 29.2sec.
“I hadn’t sat behind My Watchlist before, and the race worked out perfectly for him,” said Suvaljko.” He travelled nicely on a helmet, and when I pulled him out, he really exploded, and he revealed that electric turn of foot.
“It was good to win with him because at his previous start a fortnight ago he ran me down and beat me with Hi Sugar Rush.”
