Speedy five-year-old Bletchley Park will reappear after an absence of 27 weeks when he contests the $25,000 Follow The Stars Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Trained in Bunbury by Stephen Reed, Bletchley Park will start from the prized No. 1 barrier in the field of six, and will be driven for the first time by champion reinsman Gary Hall jnr.
Bletchley Park, a smart frontrunner, is expected to be a short-priced favourite. But he is far from being a certainty in this 2536m listed classic.
He has started from the No. 1 barrier eight times for two wins (as a two-year-old when leading), two seconds, two thirds, a fourth and an eighth. He has managed just one win from 13 attempts in races over 2536m. He also recorded seven seconds and two thirds. One of his seconds was to Major Trojan in the WA Derby in April 2019.
Bletchley Park warmed up for his first-up assignment with a 2m second to Classic Choice, rating 1.57.2 in a 2100m five-horse trial at Bunbury’s Donaldson Park last Friday week. He was driven by Reed and raced in the breeze for much of the way. The final quarters were run in 30.9sec., 29.1sec., 28.4sec. and 28.1sec.
Oakford trainer Ross Olivieri has three runners in Friday night’s race --- Iceenothink (Chris Lewis), Thats Perfect (Chris Voak) and Perfect Major (Emily Suvaljko).
Voak said that he opted to drive Thats Perfect ahead of Perfect Major because Thats Perfect had drawn a more favourable barrier. “If Thats Perfect was able to lead he would be hard to beat,” he explained.
Perfect Major will be having his first start for four weeks --- since Voak was in the sulky and the five-year-old raced in the breeze for much of the way before winning from Son Of A Tiger and Vampiro at a 1.53.4 rate over 1730m.
Iceenothink has not appeared since he ran home strongly to finish third behind Chicago Bull and Vultan Tin in the Members Sprint over 1730m at Gloucester Park on May 22 last year.
Iceenothink rated 1.58.1 when he won a seven-horse trial over 2185m at Pinjarra three weeks ago. He started from the outside barrier and was sixth when he started a three-wide move with 600m to travel. He got to the front in the final 20m and won by a neck from Roman Art.
