Rixon’s big chance
Up-and-coming star reinsman Will Rixon will revive wonderful memories of former champion Tony Turnbull when he makes his first appearance at Gloucester Park on Friday night as the driver of the brilliant My Ultimate Ronnie in the group 2 $125,000 Nova 93.7 Four-Year-Old Classic.
The 22-year-old Rixon’s grandfather, the legendary Tony Turnbull was the toast of the town when he produced a dashing display in the sulky to drive Hondo Grattan to victory in the Interdominion Championship final at Gloucester Park in February 1974, a remarkable event which I had the pleasure of calling live on Channel Nine.
Then, Rixon’s father Peter (Turnbull’s son-in-law) revealed great skill at his two drives at Gloucester Park in January 2009 when he ran second with Divisive in the Fremantle Cup before finishing a nose second with the six-year-old in the WA Pacing Cup a week later.
Divisive, owned by Turnbull’s daughter Cindy Rixon and trained by her husband, started from 20m in the Fremantle Cup, met with early interference, settled in tenth position and charged home, three wide from eighth at the bell to finish a close second to Power Of Tara.
Divisive began from the back line in the Pacing Cup the following week when heavily supported from 9/4 to 6/4 favouritism. The gelding raced one-out and three-back before starting a three-wide move approaching the bell. He burst to the front 260m from home and was beaten in the final stride by Mysta Magical Mach, who thundered home from last at the bell.
Will Rixon is delighted to have the opportunity to handle My Ultimate Ronnie for only the second time in a race. He replaces champion reinsman Cameron Hart, who has driven the Bettors Delight gelding at 31 of his 34 starts.
Hart will be concentrating on his drives on the opening night of the Interdominion Championship series at Brisbane’s Albion Park on Friday night when he will handle outstanding trainer Jason Grimson’s three splendid pacers Swayzee, Betterzippit and Nerano.
Rixon’s only drive behind My Ultimate Ronnie was in the group 3 Hondo Grattan Stakes at Menangle in February this year when the stallion started from the outside barrier in the field of ten, began speedily and then was restrained to the rear before dashing forward, three wide, 300m later to work hard in the breeze and then finishing a gallant fourth behind Republican Party, a winner at 12 of his 20 New Zealand starts, who gave a dashing frontrunning display at his Australian debut.
Rixon notched his 498TH winner when he drove ten-year-old trotter Pharisee to victory as a $9 chance at Menangle on Tuesday. That was his 144TH winner for the season, putting him in third position behind Hart (201 wins) and Josh Gallagher (145) on the New South Wales drivers’ premiership table.
His mother and father have been highly successful drivers, and his sisters Ellen and Hannah are making their marks as outstanding drivers.
My Ultimate Ronnie has won brilliantly at Menangle at his past three appearances, and his trainer, the 37-year-old Jarrod Alchin is not concerned that the horse will be having his first start this week for 33 days.
“He had a trial at Menangle on Wednesday November 15 before flying over to Perth, and then I drove him in a workout at Gloucester Park last Friday night,” said Alchin, who has trained 603 winners.
My Ultimate Ronnie trailed Raven Banner in the two-horse workout before finishing strongly with a 26.9sec. final 400 metres. “He was really sharp,” said Alchin. “He was super fit when he arrived here. He is very versatile; he can lead and can come from behind.”
My Ultimate Ronnie has excelled on the spacious 1400m Menangle circuit, and he should have no difficulty in competing over the tighter 804.5m Gloucester Park track, having raced seven times at the 804.6m Penrith track for six wins and one second (on debut, as a two-year-old on July 1, 2021).
My Ultimate Ronnie has had 34 starts for 19 wins, eight placings and stakes of $388,135. He has revealed excellent gate speed to lead and win convincingly at each of his past three starts, rating 1.51.2, 1.51.6 and 1.50.4 over the 1609m journey at Menangle.
At his most recent appearance, in the final of the $50,000 New South Wales Breeders Challenge on October 29, he began out wide at barrier No. 7 and was not pushed in coasting to the front after 100m. He covered the four 400m sections in 26.9sec., 30.2sec., 27.5sec. and 25.8sec. and won by 19.8m from Allstarzzz Frankie, who trailed him all the way.
He was not extended in a heat of the Breeders Challenge, starting from barrier four, getting to the front after 100m and reeling off quarters of 27.9sec., 29.4sec., 27.2sec. and 27.1sec. before winning by two lengths from Allstarzzz Frankie.
However, My Ultimate Ronnie is unlikely to coast to the front on Friday night, according to veteran trainer Mike Reed, who is keen for Hoppys Way to take full advantage of the prized No. 1 barrier.
Hoppys Way, a winner at eleven of his 42 starts, possess sparkling gate speed --- which he revealed in the group 3 Four-Year-Old Championship last Friday week when he began out wide at barrier eight and burst to the front after 120m before setting the pace and finishing a close third behind Star Casino and Alcopony. He raced in the breeze before winning over 2130m the previous week.
“Hoppys Way has enough speed to hold up,” said Reed. “When you draw barrier one at Gloucester Park, I don’t see any reason why you should hand up. His run last week was very good, and he should be improved by that effort and is definitely a chance of winning this week.”
Dylan Egerton-Green is confident that the Ray Williams-trained Star Casino will fight out the finish, saying: “It’s a perfect draw for him (the inside of the back line, behind Hoppys Way),” he said.
“I hope to be three back (on the pegs) at the worst. He’s got speed and could be dangerous.”
Champion reinsman Gary Hall jnr is looking forward to Youre So Fine, a winner at eleven of his 20 starts, gaining a good passage after starting from the outside of the back line.
Youre So Fine, trained by Gary Hall snr, was a most unlucky ninth behind Star Casino last Friday night when he raced three back on the pegs and was hopelessly blocked for a clear run throughout the final lap.
Will Rixon is sure to be hoping that Friday night’s big race will not provide a similar spectacular start to the 1974 Interdominion final when three runners (Haddock, Bret Armagh and Royal Gaze) galloped at the standing start before the 5/2 favourite Just Too Good fell after 100 metres, causing Paleface Adios and Welcome Advice to fall, and Local Product dislodging his driver Fred Kersley jnr.
Turnbull quickly got Hondo Grattan into third place before moving to the breeze and eventually getting to the front on the home turn and winning by a length from the fast-finishing Adios Victor.
Tony Turnbull, who died aged 91 in May 2021, achieved a special milestone by becoming the first driver to land 2000 winners in Australia when successful with Nintoku at Richmond in April 1987. He retired after driving 2878 winners, and he won the New South Wales drivers’ premiership eleven times.
Rixon will have his first taste of driving at Gloucester Park when he handles the Jocelyn Young-trained gelding Cut N Run in race four, the 2130m Freshest Hits And Throwbacks On Nova Four-Year-Old Classic Consolation.
Cut N Run raced in the breeze and finished second to Flying Rumour in a 2130m event at Gloucester Park on Tuesday night.
Roberts chooses Lusaka
Talented driver Deni Roberts has given punters a valuable lead by electing to handle Lusaka in preference to Carana in the Smooth FM Perth On Digital Radio Handicap at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Both pacers are prepared by champion trainers Greg and Skye Bond and look set to dominate the 2503m standing-start event.
They will begin from the 10m mark, with Dylan Egerton-Green to drive the six-year-old Carana, a standing-start specialist with a record of 19 starts (18 in stands for nine wins). Roberts drove Carana from 20m in a 2116m stand at Pinjarra on Monday afternoon when he was eighth (and last) at the bell before fighting on tenaciously, out wide, to get up in the final couple of strides and win narrowly from Hes Royal Blue, with final quarters of 28.5sec. and 28.9sec.
Lusaka, a three-year-old up against older and more experienced rivals, will be making his first appearance in a stand after his 18 runs in mobiles have produced 11 wins and four placings.
Lusaka qualified to contest a stand when he began smoothly from the extreme outside in a field of three in a standing-start trial at Pinjarra early in September.
He started from the outside barrier in a field of eight last Friday night when he was restrained at the start and was in last place with 300m to travel before running home strongly, out five wide, to finish fourth behind Hillview Bondi in a 2130m mobile event.
Toughest for Lusaka and Carana to beat is likely to be the Jemma Hayman-trained Extraordinary Mary, who notched her eighth win when she set the pace in a2503m stand at Gloucester Park last Friday week and won in fine style from American Bullitt.
Bee Jays Boy is out to end a lean run
Six-year-old Bee Jays Boy has been out of the winning list for 31 months, but he gets a perfect chance to return to the winning list when he begins from the prized No. 1 barrier in race one, the $21,000 Metlabs Irisndt Christmas Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He will be driven by Emily Suvaljko, who is sure to be keen to set the pace. She drove the horse three starts ago when he raced in the one-out, two-back position before running home strongly to finish a head second to Flying Rumour.
Bee Jays Boy was driven by Shannon Suvaljko at his following start when he sustained a spirited burst to finish third behind Longreach Bay and Joey James. Then, last Friday night he began from the back line and raced three back on the pegs before finishing seventh behind stablemate Shelley Beach who set the pace from the No. 1 barrier and held on to win from Mighthavtime and Tiger Royal.
Our Shelley Beach will again be driven by Shannon Suvaljko and will start from the No. 12 barrier on the back line.
Henley Brook trainer Mike Reed is not particularly enthusiastic about Bee Jay Boy’s winning prospects, saying: “He has good gate speed and is capable of leading. But he is just a run-of-the-mill horse. Our Shelley Beach should get a good run and will be running on.”
Looming large as the main danger to the Reed pacers is trainer Michael Young’s handy five-year-old October Reign, who is handily drawn at barrier three and will be driven by Gary Hall jnr, fresh from landing a treble with Beach Captain, Getn Wiggy Withit and Ventura at Bunbury on Wednesday afternoon.
This took Hall’s tally this season to 254 wins, beating his previous record season of 252 wins in the 2019-20 season.
October Reign has a losing sequence of seven since he led and beat Lamandier and High Price at Gloucester Park on September 1. October Reign fought on gamely from three back on the pegs to finish fourth behind Mister Montblanc over 2130m last Friday night.
New driver for Magnificent Storm
Dylan Egerton-Green is looking forward to driving star pacer Magnificent Storm for the first time in a race when the Ray Williams-trained gelding starts from the outside barrier in the four-horse field in the $31,000 Pat Cranley Memorial at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Egerton-Green will replace Aiden de Campo, who is serving a term of suspension.
“I worked Magnificent Storm for two weeks while Ray was on holidays in Bali earlier this year,” said Egerton-Green. “I’m looking forward to driving a horse of his calibre. Though there are only four runners, it promises to be a tactical race.”
Williams said that Magnificent Storm enjoyed a few days off after his victory in the WA Pacing Cup three weeks ago. “And today (Tuesday) his work was terrific, and I’m really happy with him,” he said.
Arma Einstein (barrier one), Minstrel (two) and Blitzembye (three) all possess excellent gate speed, and there should be a keen battle for the early lead.
Mike Reed, the trainer of Blitzembye, said that the New Zealand-bred five-year-old was capable of leading, but he would leave the tactics to star reinsman Shannon Suvaljko.
“Blitzembye’s second to Wildwest (after leading) over 2130m last Friday night was a very good run,” said Reed.
Minstrel is in sound form. He led and won from Mighty Ronaldo five starts ago, and he has been placed at his past two starts (finishing strongly when third to Magnificent Storm in the WA Pacing Cup and then racing without cover before finishing a half-head second to stablemate Steel The Show over 2536m last Friday week).
Egerton-Green is facing a busy night with drives in eight of the nine events. Apart from Magnificent Storm, he is confident all his runners have each-way prospects, particularly three-year-old filly Zephyra, who will start from the outside of the front line in the Perth’s Kate Mac For Breakfast Pace over 2130m.
Zephyra will be making her first appearance since she covered extra ground and finished a disappointing sixth behind Allaglow on October 20. “She has been racing in stronger company and I give her a good chance,” said Egerton-Green.
