Look ahead to this weekend's harness racing action in our weekly preview, thanks to Darren Clayton.
Queensland interest will be high at Menangle on Saturday night with several runners headed south in the hope of progressing to feature races on May 10.
Not As Promised will also contest another Group 1 race in Auckland in what will be his last appearance in New Zealand this campaign when he contests the Rowe Cup.
Nathan Dawson will head back across the Tasman to partner the five-year-old who has been driven by Josh Dickie at his past two starts.
GET ON
Albion Park. Race one, number one on Saturday night.
Lochinvar Jag.
Wide barriers have hurt the pacer at his past two appearances, with the big gate improvement a huge asset for this assignment. Lochinvar Jag has all the options to capitalise.
OAKS ASSAULT
Grant Dixon will have a runner in each of the three qualifiers on Saturday at Menangle with Ruby Rules, Reds Ablaze and Cool And Classy each contesting a heat of the New South Wales Oaks.
A top three finish in each of their respective heats will be required to guarantee a spot in the $200,000 Final to be held on Saturday May 10.
Cool And Classy looks the stables top hope, with last season’s Australian two-year-old filly of the year to start from barrier two in the third heat.
Finishing second in both runs this season, Cool And Classy will face some tough opposition in her quest to qualify for the decider, with the all-conquering Emma Stewart represented by Beach Diamond and Let Her Roll.
Ruby Rules will contest the opening heat and has drawn poorly in gate nine.
However, the daughter of Ohoka Punter will move into barrier seven if the emergencies are not required.
That still makes it a tough ask following her last start ninth in the Nutrien Classic Final.
The winner of that race, Ivseenheavenslight, will start from barrier four.
In heat two, Reds Ablaze will also start from an awkward gate, with the dangers appearing to be Ill Be Gone for Emma Stewart and Soho American for Mick Stanley.
GATE ONE FOR CHEER LEADER
Bouncing back to winning form with a career-best time against her name last week, Cheer Leader will start from gate one in the Group 3 Robin Dundee Stakes for trainer Grant Dixon.
The stable are keen to qualify for next week’s Group 1 Queen Elizabeth.
The winner of 12 races and more than $200,000 in earnings following her last start victory, Cheer Leader faces a tough test in a race that is stacked with depth.
The race is headlined by the Luke McCarthy-trained Eye Keep Smiling.
Claiming a fourth successive victory last start in the Riverina Championship, Eye Keep Smiling finished eighth in the 2024 Queen Elizabeth and is one of two runners attempting to force their way into the race in 2025.
The other is Rakero Rebel for trainer Jess Tubbs.
Blake Fitzpatrick will take the reins on the six-year-old Rakero Rebel again this week.
Queensland will also be represented by Thesunandthemoon, with Jack Callaghan to partner the four-year-old for trainer Chantal Turpin.
Thesunandthemoon set a new class record for mares over 2138 metres when stopping the clock in 1.52.8 with her last start demolition at Albion Park.
The daughter of Vincent will start from barrier five should the second emergency not be required.
SUNSET SHOULD AGAIN BE GOLDEN
Contesting race four on Saturday night at Albion Park, the Shawn Grimsey-trained Golden Sunset will start from barrier five in her final run before heading to Menangle for a tilt at the Group 1 Macarthur Mile next week.
The past three starts of Golden Sunset have been extraordinary and all three have been over a different distance.
Just three starts back, the mare was a close second over the marathon 3157 metre journey in a new track record.
That followed with a mare’s class record at the 2138 metre mobile start and then last time she shattered the track record at 1660 metres, stooping the clock in 1.53.7.
Winning nine races since joining the Grimsey stable, Golden Sunset has catapulted her name into Inter Dominion calculations and is now arguably the best trotter currently racing in Queensland.
If she is to face any competition on Saturday, it could come from Zealous Spur who was attacking the line strongly last start in finishing second to Golden Sunset.
The query runner is the Jack Butler-trained Masterly.
Masterly is a nine-time winner in New Zealand who will be stepping out on this side of the Tasman for the first time.
RUDY GEE TO RULE
Trained by Chantal Turpin, four-year-old pacer Rudy Gee has proven enigmatic since arriving in Queensland.
A first-up winner back in early March, the gelding has failed to beat a runner home in his past two starts, with the most recent of those on March 29.
Given a trial to iron out some of the issues, that hit-out was a tidy performance and after securing the premier barrier for this assignment, it can be the catalyst for a return to winning form.
Dictating in front at his first-up Queensland victory in a career best 1.52.3, Rudy Gee should be able to burrow through to take control of proceedings.
