Jumpingjackmac ready to explode
Champion reinsman Gary Hall jnr has driven Chicago Bull to victory 58 times during the evergreen pacer’s glittering career, but he had no hesitation in choosing to handle the comparatively inexperienced four-year-old Jumpingjackmac in preference to his nine-year-old stablemate in the $30,000 Members Free-For-All at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
And Hall is confident that Jumpingjackmac not only will beat Chicago Bull but will also prove the master of rising superstar Magnificent Storm in the 2130m event.
Jumpingjackmac will start from the No. 1 barrier in the quality field of six runners, with Chicago Bull (to be driven by Callan Suvaljko) on the outside, and Magnificent Storm drawn at barrier four.
“It was an easy decision to pick Jumpingjackmac,” said Hall. “Chicago Bull is racing first-up and will definitely be underdone, and I do give Jumpingjackmac a good chance of beating Magnificent Storm.”
Hall is basing his confidence after assessing Magnificent Storm’s first-up victory by a head over While They Pray in a 2536m event last Friday night when While They Pray was driven by Hall and set a solid pace.
Magnificent Storm, having his first start for 19 weeks, raced three back on the pegs in the Indian file affair before racing without cover over the final 900m and gaining the narrow verdict after a titanic struggle with While They Pray over the final 400m.
“While They Pray stretched Magnificent Storm’s neck all the way to the line,” said Hall. “And I think that Jumpingjackmac has a bit more tactical speed than While They Pray, so he should be able to make it a bit harder for Magnificent Storm.
“If Jumpingjackmac is as good as we think he is and hope that he is, then if he can’t win under this scenario, it is hard to see him beating Magnificent Storm in the big events (like the Fremantle Cup and WA Pacing Cup) in the summer.
“Magnificent Storm did a good job to pick up (and beat) While They Pray, who is a good frontrunner. Jumpingjackmac is a great frontrunner and I think he is good enough to win.”
Jumpingjackmac, who is trained by Gary Hall snr, has impressed with his 12 wins and six second placings in his 21-start career. He has performed strongly at his first two appearances after a spell, leading and winning first-up by more than two lengths from While They Pray over 2536m and then finishing fast from sixth at the bell to be second to Double Up over 1730m three weeks ago.
Chicago Bull, the winner of 62 races from 106 starts, has had a spell since he set the pace and wilted to fifth behind stablemate Diego in the 2692m Pinjarra Cup on March 7. He was placed at his three previous outings --- behind Wildwest in the 2936m WA Pacing Cup, Balcatherine over 2130m and Cordero over 2536m.
“I have driven Chicago Bull once on the track (in recent weeks) and he felt normal,” said Hall jnr. “It was just what you would expect from him. He will need the run for sure on Friday night, and so will Diego (who will be driven by Maddison Brown from barrier No. 2). At his previous preparation Chicago Bull took a bit longer (than usual) to come to his top.”
Aiden de Campo, who will drive Magnificent Storm for Mt Helena trainer Ray Williams, said: “It’s a small but interesting field on Friday night, and I reckon Magnificent Storm will improve on his first-up run.
“I was really happy with his performance, and it was the fight within him that got him across the line.”
Ragazzo Mach set to lead and win
Talented New Zealand-bred four-year-old Ragazzo Mach has been placed at his first two appearances after resuming from a spell, and his reinsman Shannon Suvaljko is confident he will chalk up his eleventh win at his 22ND start when he begins from the prized No. 1 barrier in the Follow @Gloucesterpark On Twitter Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Ragazzo Mach, prepared by astute Henley Brook trainer Mike Reed, started from the No. 2 barrier and led for the first 200m before being crossed by Typhoon Banner in a 2130m event last Friday night. Ragazzo Mach was hampered for room in the home straight when he finished a sound second to Typhoon Banner.
“He got out as quick as he can, but Typhoon Banner just had too much speed,” said Suvaljko. “This week he will get out quickly and won’t have to change lanes. He will be able to go out in a straight line and I’m pretty sure he will be able to lead easily.
“He needed the run last week. I drove him on the track the previous Tuesday, and he needed it (the workout), and on the Friday he went to the line good. I am confident he can win, and the run will improve him further.”
Reed has a good chance of landing the quinella, with his other runner, Blitzembye, favourably drawn at barrier two. Gary Hall jnr has been engaged to drive Blitzembye, who should enjoy a perfect trail behind his stablemate.
Suvaljko had the choice of driving ten-year-old Twoandahalf Tigers, 11-year-old Billy Mack and nine-year-old Disco Under Fire in the Allwood Stud Farm Pace --- and he has opted to handle the Tracy Reay-trained Twoandahalf Tigers, who will begin from the No. 1 barrier in the 2130m event.
Twoandahalf Tigers has a losing sequence of 27, but Suvaljko is upbeat about his winning prospects, saying: “His past two runs have been really good, and I’m sure he will be hard to beat.
“Two starts ago he started off 30 metres in a stand at Pinjarra, and he ran a big race (starting at $91 and coming from five back on the pegs to finish fourth behind Call To Arms) when the last 800m off the front was run in 58sec. And then at Pinjarra on Monday this week he flew home to run third to Joey James and Miss Boudica.”
The major danger to Twoandahalf Tigers looms large as nine-year-old Athabascan, whose most recent success was in Albany in February 2020.
Athabascan is now being prepared by Debra Lewis, and he will be driven by Chris Lewis from out wide at barrier eight. He has impressed in recent trials --- leading and winning at a 1.59.1 rate over 2185m at Pinjarra and finishing a close second to Magnificent Storm over 2150m at Byford last Sunday week.
Suvaljko is also looking forward to driving Bracken Sky for Wanneroo trainer Debbie Padberg in the 2130m TABtouch Pace, in which the seven-year-old with a losing sequence of 23 is awkwardly drawn at barrier six.
“This is a big drop in grade for Bracken Sky, and he should run a good race,” said Suvaljko. “He has a few options. He has good gate speed, and he can sit up and run home.”
De Campo’s thorny problem
Promising filly Between Two Thorns is proving somewhat of a nightmare for ace trainer-reinsman Aiden de Campo, with her erratic behaviour costing her certain victory at her past two starts.
The two-year-old will get another chance to prove her worth when she starts out wide at barrier No. 8 in the TAB Radio Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“At her past two starts she has got to the front relatively easily and likely to win by half the straight,” said de Campo. “There was no doubt that she had the wood on the rest of the field in those races, but she switched off and wasn’t being very genuine.
“I’ll be changing a bit of gear to see how she goes on Friday when she has drawn poorly, which doesn’t help. She has also been hanging quite badly. I’m now trying to iron out her problems before the big races. The ability is there, and on ability I think she is as good as anything in the race.
“The mental capacity is not there, even though it wouldn’t surprise me if she wins this week.”
Last Friday week Between Two Thorns began from barrier seven and settled in sixth position before moving into the one-out, one-back position and then bursting to the lead 520m from home and leading by three lengths on the home turn before losing concentration and wilting to third behind Zephyra.
She began from the outside barrier in a field of seven last Friday night when she raced wide early and then dashed forward into the breeze with 1050m to travel. She took the lead 400m from the finish but then raced greenly and hung out approaching the home turn. She lost ground and finished fifth, more than five lengths behind the winner Imahero.
The Mike Reed-trained Cabsav will have many admirers from barrier five in Friday night’s 2130m event. She finished strongly to win the group 1 Sales Classic on February 25 before going for a spell. She resumed racing five weeks ago when she disappointed when a fading fifth behind Quartzz after racing in the breeze.
“She wasn’t feeling well at her latest,” said reinsman Shannon Suvaljko. “She is a good filly, and if she’s back to her best she probably would lead and win.”
Imahero finished solidly to win from Valhalla Angel and Spiritofanangel last Friday night, and those three fillies should be prominent along with Jackie Daniels, who has been unplaced at her three starts but impressed with a couple of sound trials at Byford before she was checked and finished eighth behind Magnus Victor at Pinjarra on Monday of last week.
Young confident with Moonlite Drive
Mundijong trainer Michael Young, fresh from wins with Beefour Bacardi at Pinjarra on Monday, Getn Wiggy Withit at Gloucester Park on Tuesday and Cooper at Bunbury on Wednesday, is confident his purple patch will continue at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He sung the praises of Moonlite Drive and declared that the New Zealand-bred five-year-old would prove extremely hard to beat when he starts from the No. 2 barrier in the 2536m Bridge Bar Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“I’m pretty confident he will win,” Young said. “He’s got gate speed and the plan will be to lead. Moonlite Drive grows three legs on the rails. It was a good run last week when the winner (Ezana) went a bit better.
“He has been going really good from bad barriers. Two starts ago, in the group 3 Pure Steel Pace he was held up and also carried a flat tyre. And I think that if he had got clear he still would have won. It was a huge run (finishing ninth behind Talks Up A Storm).”
Moonlite Drive will again be driven by Gary Hall jnr, who settled the gelding in 11TH position in the group 3 Im Themightyquinn Pace before he started a three-wide move approaching the bell.
“I pulled out and just waited there, trying to flush out Ezana and then looking for cover,” he explained. “I probably would have been better off going ahead of Ezana.”
Ezana got to the breeze at the 650m, took the lead 110m from home and won by two lengths from Moonlite Drive.
“It’s not a bad field on Friday night, but from barrier two I imagine Moonlite Drive should get to the front (in the early stages),” said Hall.
Moonlite Dream’s chief rivals appear to be Markham Eyre and Tiger Royal. Markham Eyre was most unlucky last week when he trailed the pacemaker Iamthefirecracker in the Im Themightquinn Pace and was shuffled back through the field behind the tiring Iamthefirecracker in the final lap to finish ninth.
Tiger Royal has resumed after a spell in fine style, surging home from the rear for a first-up victory over Major Corrida, and then racing in the breeze before finishing an excellent second to Major Publisher last Friday night.
Young said that Medieval Man, trained by his partner Kiara Davies, had strong winning prospects in the 2130m Retravision Pace, in which he will be driven by Emily Suvaljko from the prized No. 1 barrier.
Medieval Man ended a streak of seven unplaced runs with an excellent second to Dominus Factum last Friday night when he fought on grandly after racing without cover all the way.
“We thought that he could lead and win last week, and I think that if he had led, he would have won,” said Young. “The plan this week is to lead, and I think that he can hold the lead (from Valbonne), and if he does lead, he will be awfully hard to beat. He is a great frontrunner.”
In-form trainer-reinsman Dylan Egerton-Green has high hopes of starting Friday night’s meeting in fine style by winning the opening event, the Beau Rivage Pace, with the smart three-year-old colt Paul Edward, who has a losing sequence of twelve.
Paul Edward impressed last Friday week when he trailed the pacemaker Free Wheeling before getting off the pegs on the home turn and sprinting home fast to finish a head second to Street Hawk. It was his fourth consecutive second placing and he is certainly overdue for a change of fortune.
“He is going well, and, hopefully, he can keep racing well,” said Egerton-Green. “It’s a tricky draw at barrier three, but he should run a good race.”
Considerable interest will surround the clash between well-performed four-year-old mares Platinum Sparkle and Blaze Coops in the $30,000 group 3 Lombardo Pace when both pacers will be appearing at Gloucester Park for the first time.
Platinum Sparkle, trained by Justin Prentice and to be driven by Gary Hall jnr, will start from the No. 1 barrier, with the Shane Tognolini-trained Blaze Coops drawn at barrier two.
Platinum Sparkle made a successful WA debut when she began speedily from barrier five, raced in the breeze, took the lead 250m from home and held on to beat Major Freeway over 2100m at Bunbury on June 1. She began fast from a wide draw, raced wide early and then gained a favourable passage, one-out and one-back, when a fighting fourth behind Rascal at Bunbury two weeks later.
Blaze Coops looks set for a strong effort at her WA debut, following an impressive 2150m trial win at Byford on Sunday morning when she began fast from barrier four, set the pace and sped over the final 400m in 27.8sec. to win easily from Longreach Bay.
“She got off the arm quickly and won easily, with the plugs still in,” said Shannon Suvaljko.
