Hall Aiming For No. 4
Champion reinsman Gary Hall Jnr drove superstar pacer Im Themightyquinn to 50 of his 58 victories in a glittering career, and he will be seeking his fourth success in the $30,000 Ascot Group WA Im Themightyquinn Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He trains and drives former Victorian performer Final Collect, the solitary runner off the back line back line in the 213m feature event, leaving him with many options.
Hall has won this event with Caviar Star (2019), Acharne Girl (2023) and Ira Poole (2024), and Final Collect ran a sound trial for Friday night’s event with a convincing first-up victory in weaker company last Friday week.
That was his first appearance for 15 weeks, and he is sure to have derived great benefit from his solid effort. He won at two of his 12 New Zealand starts, his 48 starts in Victoria produced six wins and 13 placings, and he has had two runs in WA for Hall for an unlucky first-up third behind Bettors Pride at Gloucester Park on September 12, 2025, his first outing for four months.
At his latest appearance Final Collect began out wide at barrier seven and was restrained to the rear before Hall dashed him forward to move to the breeze and then take the lead with 1300m to travel. The final 400m sections were run in 28sec. and 28.9sec. and he won by just over a length from Manhattan Moon, rating 1.57.2.
Creating considerable interest in Friday night’s race will be the reappearance of crack five-year-old Justcallmemiki, who will be having his first start for 14 weeks for champion trainers Greg and Skye Bond and star driver Deni Roberts.
The New Zealand-bred gelding drops massively in class, and he should prove mighty hard to beat. He has raced 26 times for eleven wins and four placings. After winning at four of his 12 New Zealand starts Justcallmemiki made a superb Australian debut at Gloucester Park in February 2025 when he led from the No. 1 barrier and won the Group 3 Chandon Four-Year-Old Classic, beating Waverider by three lengths.
Four starts ago Justcallmemiki trailed the pacemaker and finished a nose second to Waverider in the Group 1 Golden Nugget last November, and six months earlier he contested the Nullarbor slot race in which he enjoyed no luck from out wide at barrier eight and finished last behind Mister Smartee.
Among the main opponents for Final Collect and Justcallmemiki are Petes Honour, Minos and Rockandrollartist.
Petes Honour, trained by Jemma Hayman, will start from the No. 6 barrier, with Chris Lewis taking over as the driver from Chris Voak, who is serving a week’s suspension. Voak has driven Petes Honour at his past four starts for three wins and a last-start second to Star Casino last Friday night when he was hampered for room in the home straight.
Lewis has driven Petes Honour 39 times for seven wins and seven placings.
Minos has the ability to overcome a wide barrier at No. 7. He has impressed for trainer-reinsman Lindsay Harper, with his five WA starts producing three wins. He is capable of improving considerably from his fading tenth and last placing behind Star Casino over 2536m last Friday night when he settled down in last position, went forward, three wide, after a lap and was kept out wide before eventually getting to the breeze.
Rockandrollartist possesses excellent gate speed, and if Aiden De Campo can get him away speedily and into the early lead his winning prospects will improve considerably.
Symington Back In Action
Outstanding young reinsman Kyle Symington has recently returned home after five months away in the United States where he gained invaluable experience driving, and he will be keen to resume in style when he competes in four of the ten events at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He has a good chance in the opening event, the $21,000 Trusted Asbestos Removal WA Pace over 2130m in which he will handle seven-year-old Rellim for part-owner and trainer Dean Miller.
Rellim, who has a losing sequence of 27, is awkwardly drawn at barrier six. But that should not be a problem, considering that his recent racing pattern has been to be restrained to the rear before finishing strongly.
Rellim was eleventh in the middle stages and eighth at the bell before charging home to finish fifth behind Girl Of Brightness over 2130m last Friday week. A week earlier he was most impressive when he was tenth at the bell before flying home, out seven wide, to finish a close third behind Your Grace
The WA-bred gelding also caught the eye at his two previous outings when he finished strongly into third place on both occasions.
Rellim’s chief rival is sure to be Bettathanlife, the only mare in the field of twelve, who will begin from the No. 2 barrier on the back line for trainer-reinsman Aiden De Campo.
Four-year-old Bettathanlife did not race as a two-year-old and her only appearance in New Zealand was when she finished third behind Tosana at Winton in May 2025. Her next start was four months later when she led and won by eleven lengths from Pipers Parade over 2185m at Pinjarra, rating 1.56.8, early last September.
Her next three starts resulted in a nose second to the brilliant Fakenit in a prelude of the WA Oaks, a second to Fakenit in the Group 3 Daintys Daughter Classic and a fourth behind Fakenit in the Oaks final last October.
Symington’s other drives on Friday night will be behind Infinite Sign in race four, Funky Music (race seven) and Chugach (race ten).
Infinite Sign, a seven-year-old trained by Jocelyn Young, faces a stern test from out wide at barrier eight in the 2130m Ascot Group Made In WA Pace, in which Mad Monday looks the testing material from barrier four at his first appearance since leading from the No. 8 barrier and winning convincingly from Captain Stirling at a 1.54.9 rate over 1730m on November 21.
Mad Monday, trained by Greg and Skye Bond, has raced 19 times for six wins and five seconds, and his clash with smart performers Sebastian James (barrier two on the back line), Spitfire (inside of the back line) and Bettor Arcade (outside of the front line) should provide plenty of action.
Funky Muscic, trained by Cody Wallrodt, will start from the No. 2 barrier in the 2130m AGWA Refurbishments Pace. She is a five-year-old mare who has raced 85 times for eight wins and 19 placings. She has raced at Gloucester Park only five times for a third, fourth, fifth, seventh and 11TH placing.
Chugach, trained by Greg and Skye Bond, has won at two of his 13 starts and is awkwardly drawn at the No. 6 barrier in the Demolition Services Perth Pace for three-year-olds.
Harper Opts For Cee Dee Three
Kyle Harper has given punters a valuable lead by choosing to drive Cee Dee Three in preference to Terror In Texas in the 2130m AGWA Building Maintenance Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Harper has driven the injury-plagued Terror In Texas at his two appearances last month after the talented nine-year-old reappeared following an absence of 23 months.
Terror In Texas, prepared by veteran South Fremantle trainer Keith Frost, was a sound first-up second to Whos the Dad over 2185m at Pinjarra on February 16 before he impressed in running home strongly from seventh at the bell to finish a close second to Louie Lebeau over 2130m at Gloucester Park the following week.
However, Harper has decided to stick with the Shane Tognolini-trained seven-year-old Cee Dee Three, an Auckland Reactor horse he has driven 16 times for three wins and six placings.
Cee Dee Three, who has raced only 20 times for four wins and eight placings, has raced keenly at his first three appearances since resuming from a spell.
He ran home solidly when a first-up fourth behind Spitfire; was then an unlucky fifth behind Reset The Bar; and at his latest appearance, over 2130m last Friday night, he began out wide at barrier No. 7, was restrained to the rear before running home determinedly from seventh at the bell to finish third behind Lincoln Lou and Beat The Bank when the final 400m sections were run in 27.5sec. and 28sec.
Cee Dee Three and Terror In Texas (who will be driven by Chris Lewis) are not likely to have things all their own way. They are expected to be challenged strongly by Sugar Shake (barrier seven) and Dourado (nine).
Sugar Shake, a lightly-raced seven-year-old, to be driven by Jocelyn Young for trainer Cameron Ross, reappeared after an absence of 15 months when he impressed greatly in finishing a half-head second to Reset The Bar over 2130m last Friday week.
Sugar Shake took the lead after 500m and set a brisk pace with final quarters of 29.8sec., 28.5sec. and 28.9sec. and was overhauled in the final stride.
Dourado, trained and driven by Aiden De Campo, is racing in fine style and is capable of overcoming the disadvantage of beginning from the outside barrier (No. 9) on the front line. He was eighth at the bell and was hampered for room until late when fourth behind Reset The Bar last Friday week.
Punters should go home happy, with the favourite Im Stealthy having strong winning claims in the final event, the 2130m Demolition Services Pace for three-year-olds. The Downbytheseaside gelding is prepared by Gary Hall Snr and will be driven by Gary Hall Jnr.
The New Zealand-bred Im Stealthy has been successful at three of his five starts, including an excellent first-up victory when he rated a smart 1.55.2 over 2185m at Pinjarra last Monday week when he defeated Proposition Joe by just under three lengths after setting the pace, with final quarters of 28.5sec., 28.4sec. and 27sec.
Leading trainers Greg and Skye Bond hold a strong hand in the race with four of the eight runners, Crunchnsip (Liam Elliott), Chugach (Kyle Symington), The Final Offer (Stuart McDonald) and In Rare Air (Deni Roberts). In Rare Air, racing first-up for just over three months, has had seven starts for two wins and four placings and looks Im Stealthy’s most serious rival.
