Minstrel Is Awe-Inspiring
Mighty pacer Minstrel, placed in the past two Nullarbor slot races, is poised to break through and win the $1,250,000 feature event on April 17.
The superstar nine-year-old is at the peak of his powers, and he produced a remarkable effort to score an awe-inspiring victory in the $31,000 Trotsynd Join The Fun Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“Definitely, he will be a top contender in the Nullarbor,” declared Deni Roberts after driving the champion pacer to an easy victory, rating 1.53.5, his fastest rate in his eleven wins from 21 starts over the 2130m journey.
Minstrel’s trainers Greg and Skye Bond, who were inducted into the WA Racing Hall of Fame on Saturday night, are planning to keep Minstrel fit and well by working him at their Forrestdale training establishment before lining up in the 2536m Nullarbor.
Minstrel, who has earned $2,050,823 from 32 wins and 27 placings from 80 starts, has never raced better at any stage of his magnificent career.
Though the opposition on Friday night was not elite, Minstrel did what very few pacers could do in any class. The $1.40 favourite began out wide at barrier No. 8 and he was urged forward, three and four wide in the early stages while noted speedster Rockandrollartist ($19) was setting a brisk pace with a lead time of 36.8sec. and a blistering opening 400m section of the final mile in 27.7sec.
Minstrel finally got to the breeze after racing wide for the first 950m when Gary Hall Jnr sent Mighty Ronaldo ($4.60) to the front. Mighty Ronaldo sprinted over the third quarter in 27.8sec. but this was of no concern for Minstrel, who finally surged to the front with 400m to travel. The final quarter was run in 28.5sec. and Minstrel scored by two lengths from Mighty Ronaldo, who fought on grandly to finish a half-head ahead of Minstrel’s stablemate Gee Heza Sport.
Roberts was lavish in her praise of Minstrel, saying: “He was the best horse in the race by a fair bit, so it didn’t bother him, doing all that work. It is so hard to have a horse at his age to race like that at that level.
“But for him and another nine-year-old Magnificent Storm to compete so well at the top level is a credit to them. They come back year after year and get better and better.”
Mighty Ronaldo is also in line for another appearance in the Nullarbor, with Hall saying: “He went super, and it was almost career best.” Trainer Justin Prentice will be eyeing the $50,000 Bunbury Cup next Saturday night for the evergreen eight-year-old.
Wishing Belle Set For Classic
The brilliant Wishing Belle gave further proof that she will be hard to beat in the $100,000 APG Sales Classic for three-year-old fillies on April 17 when she revealed sparkling speed to score an easy win in the Bridge Bar Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Trainer-reinsman Aiden De Campo’s confident prediction that Wishing Belle would lead from barrier four and make life extremely tough for star colt D Mac and the highly promising gelding Proposition Joe was justified with Wishing Belle beating Proposition Joe by a length, with last year’s Golden Slipper winner D Mac another length farther back in third place.
Wishing Belle, who is expected to contest an event for fillies next Friday night , has been most impressive, with her eleven starts producing nine wins, two seconds and $273,311 in prizemoney.
She is justifying De Campo’s judgment in choosing the filly at the 2024 Perth APG sale and purchasing her for $55,000 before syndicating her to several stable clients.
“It was good that we were able to pinch the opening quarter in 31.3sec.,” said De Campo. “She is not only an excellent frontrunner, but she has a lot of highspeed and is a capable sit-sprinter.”
Wishing Belle was the $2.20 second fancy, with D Mac, racing first-up, the $1.75 favourite, and Proposition Joe an $8.50 chance who worked hard in the breeze and fought on determinedly.
D Mac, who started from the outside in the field of seven, raced in last position until Gary Hall Jnr sent him forward with about 700m to travel. He plugged on gamely.
“D Mac hangs in and battles to get around the bends,” said Hall. “He is a work in progress and needs to be straightened.”
Wishing Belle has inherited much of the brilliance from her dam, the Christian Cullen mare Libertybelle Midfrew, who raced 51 times for 19 wins, 11 placings and $640,497. Her wins included the 2014 WA Oaks, the Golden Nugget later that year and the 2016 Mount Eden Sprint.
Chasing Rex Bows Out As A Winner
Victorian-bred five-year-old Chasing Rex completed his sojourn in Western Australia with a strong win in the $21,000 Bernard and Jacinta Tie The Knot Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“Chasing Rex and his stablemate Better Eclipse are due to leave for Sydney on Sunday,” said the Betting Line gelding’s trainer-reinsman Gary Hall Jnr.
Both pacers performed soundly in WA, with Chasing Rex having eleven starts for two wins, three placings and $37,189, and eight-year-old Better Eclipse earning $63,772 from one win, five seconds and one third from 14 starts.
Chasing Rex, the $3.80 favourite from out wide at barrier seven, settled down in eighth position before moving to the breeze outside the pacemaker Lillie Queen ($5.50) in the middle stages. Chasing Rex hit the front with 90m to travel and beat Lillie Queen by a length and a half, rating 1.57.1 after final quarters of 29.1sec. and 28.9sec.
“I was happy with the way he was travelling on the bend when I didn’t want to put his head in front too early,” said Hall. “I felt that I had the leader covered, but sometimes when you hold them up, they don’t want to go when you want them to go.”
Chasing Rex’s victory gave Hall his third winner in the first three events, following the successes of Delightful Peg and A Little Silence in the first two events. Both those New Zealand-bred pacers are prepared by Gary Hall Snr.
“Delightful Peg was impressive,” said Hall Jnr. Four-year-old Delightful Peg, who had won at her Australian debut, at Gloucester Park three days earlier, was the youngest runner in Friday night’s 2130m event which was restricted to mares.
She was the $1.60 favourite who raced three wide for the first 550m before moving to the breeze outside the pacemaker Vinita Rose ($7.50) and getting to the front 200m from home and winning by a half-neck from $21 chance Starlight Dream. The winner rated 1.56.6.
“I was not unhappy to be in the breeze,” said Hall Jnr. “On what she has done at home she is quite tough, so I wasn’t worried about being there.”
Delightful Peg is by Bettors Delight and is the fifth foal out of Live Or Die mare Elite Medley, who was retired after one win in a minor event from five starts in New Zealand. Delightful Peg has earned $75,580 from five wins and three placings from 22 starts.
Five-year-old A Little Silence was the $1.50 favourite from the outside barrier in the field of nine in the 1730m Tickets On Sale for TABtouch Nullarbor Pace, in which he was making his first appearance for 33 months.
He simply proved vastly superior to his rivals, coming from last in the middle stages to get to the front with 430m to travel and racing away to beat $8 chance Bazaar Package, who battled on doggedly after racing without cover. The winner rated a smart 1.55.2 after the polemarker Mikipelo had sprinted over the opening 400m section in 27.7sec. The pace then slackened with quarters of 29.4sec., 29.5sec. and 29.5sec.
“It is never easy first-up when a horse has been out for such a long time,” said Hall Jnr. A Little Silence has had plenty of injuries since he arrived in WA in August 2023. Finally, he has recovered after being laid low three times by damaged tendons.
A Little Silence showed tremendous promise when he raced twice in New Zealand as a two-year-old, finishing a close second in Group 2 events at Addington and Ashburton. He is by American sire Downbytheseaside and is the first foal out of the unraced Sportswriter mare So Many Words.
First-Up Win For Hi Suga Rush
Pinjarra trainer-reinsman Chris Voak was happy to take over the preparation of Hi Suga Rush just over a month ago, and he was delighted when he drove the New Zealand-bred gelding to a fighting win in the $21,000 Bridge Bar Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Hi Suga Rush, the $2.80 favourite, began swiftly from out wide at barrier seven before challenging $41 chance A Duke To Be hard for the early lead when the lead time was a quick 7.4sec., followed by a sizzling opening quarter of 27.4sec.
Hi Suga Rush took the lead after 550m and bowled along in front before winning by a length from the $3.70 second fancy Allwood Mach, who finished solidly from sixth at the bell.
Hi Suga Rush rated 1.55.7, and Voak said he expected the six-year-old Sweet Lou gelding to get down to rating 1.54 over 1730m.
“With his gate speed I think he will prove to be better suited over a mile in America,” said Voak. “Maybe, I’ll give him a few more runs before selling him to America. It was good to get a result tonight, first-up. He lifted off the canvas.”
Voak said that Serpentine trainer Giles Inwood had bought Hi Suga Rush for $12,000 about five weeks ago before offering him the gelding. Voak accepted the offer and syndicated the pacer to several stable clients.
Hi Suga Rush was racing first-up for six weeks on Friday night, and the win ended a losing sequence of 14. The gelding has now raced 33 times for nine wins, four placings and $68,058. Hi Suga Rush is an older brother to the speedy Lincoln Lou, who has had 31 starts for five wins, ten placings and $100,249. They are out of Bettors Delight mare Sea Of Gold, who won twice from 25 starts in New Zealand.
Sea Of Gold is a full-sister of The Gold Ace, who earned $1,247,053 from 22 wins and 18 placings from 69 starts. The Gold Ace’s four Group 1 victories in New Zealand included the New Zealand Derby in April 2011 when he beat Terror To Love. He also raced twice at Gloucester Park in 2011, winning the Four-Year-Old Championship (beating Lovers Delight) and the Golden Nugget (beating Mustang Mach).
Sea Of Gold also produced Gold Elite (35 starts for six wins, 12 placings and $70,037), Lets Strike The Gold (87 starts for 15 wins, 15 placings and $180,724) and Dark Energy (259 starts for 34 wins, 55 placings and $449,832).
Petes Honour Is In The Zone
Five-year-old Petes Honour, bred, owned and trained by Jemma Hayman, has risen to the next level and is ready to maintain his consistent form.
“He is in the zone, and providing he pulls up well after winning tonight I might look at starting him in a Free-For-All next Friday night,” said Hayman.
Petes Honour overcame the task of starting from the back mark of 30 metres to score a narrow win in the Gim Golf Swing, Aim and Win Handicap over 2503m at Gloucester Park on Friday night to improve his record to 57 starts for 14 wins, 12 placings and $167,066.
He was driven aggressively by Chris Voak, who settled the Sweet Lou gelding down in ninth position before sending him forward with a three-wide burst after a lap to move to the breeze 1500m from home. He assumed control at the bell and quickly opened up a big lead before holding on to finish a head in front of $4.80 chance Last Hard Copy, who ran home strongly from seventh at the bell.
“I think that the decision to qualify him from a stand about five weeks ago was a wise one,” said Hayman. “Since then, he has raced off back marks and won at his two appearances in stands. And I must pay credit to Murray Hansen, who has done a good job with the horse. He gets on with him really well.”
Petes Honour is the fifth foal out of Arousing, who earned $119,663 from eleven wins and 32 placings from 110 starts. A little more than three hours before Petes Honour’s victory on Friday night, his six-year-old full-sister Ciao Babe was successful in race two at Northam as a $13.10 chance for owner-trainer Robin Bell.
Ciao Babe, who was bred by Hayman, set the pace and won by a length from Satan Princess in the 1780m event at Northam. Ciao Babe was having her 61ST start for Bell, and her win ended a losing sequence of 74. The first foal out of Arousing was Run For Mercy, who was bred, part-owned and trained by Hayman, and was retired with a record of 91 starts for 12 wins, 26 placings and stakes of $132,581. Voak was in the sulky for eight of those victories.
