Howlett Celebrates First Metro Win
“This is my first metro win, and it’s very exciting,” exclaimed Busselton trainer Katie Howlett after Chris Voak had driven the inexperienced five-year-old Brought To Light to an easy victory in the Westral Meshlock Security Doors And Screens Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Howlett has revived Bought To Light’s career this year after gelding was off the scene for 30 months after finishing second in the Group 1 Golden Slipper in September 2023.
“He had a rushed preparation as a two-year-old when I had issues with him,” said Howlett. “And then after getting him back in work after a spell he kept going rough and galloping all the time.
“We couldn’t diagnose what was causing the trouble, and it was discovered that he had bone chips in a leg, and they were removed.
“But he still was not right. I worked it out that the problem was with his feet, and finally I used flip flops on him this preparation, and they have worked. I wish I had tried them on him earlier.”
Brought To Light was having his sixth start in his comeback campaign when he was the $3.40 favourite on Friday night. Voak got him away quickly from the No. 3 barrier and he dashed go the front after 150m when Aiden De Campo was content to take the sit with $6 chance Up And Alive.
Brought To Light sprinted over the final 800m in 55.8sec. and coasted to a 7m victory over the $3.80 second fancy Spitfire, who fought on gamely after working without cover all the way. Up And Alive finished a close-up third, with the winner rating 1.55.2.
Voak praised Brought To Light, saying: “There is no doubt he has the ability to step up to Free-For-Alls, providing his body holds up. He is strong and versatile, and patience and passion pays off.”
“I had an idea Brought To Light could win the Bunbury Horse of the Year award this season, but with this city win he might have limited opportunities to race at Bunbury (where he has had four starts this season for two wins, one third and one fourth placing),” said Howlett.
“I have 20 horses in training and the staff we have are great.”
Brought To Light is a nuggetty, well-muscled little pacer who now has raced 16 times for four wins, seven placings and $75,210 in prizemoney. He is a typical dark brown Bettors Delight gelding, who is the ninth foal out of the Dream Away mare Exposay, who produced former star pacer El Jacko.
El Jacko earned $620,010 from 41 wins and 48 placings from 183 starts. He had seven starts in New Zealand for two wins as a three-year-old before winning 21 times in Western Australia and being sent to the United States where he won another 19 times.
El Jacko is well remembered for his second to Rocknroll Lincoln in the WA Pacing Cup at Gloucester Park in January 2019 before he reversed the placings with his win in the Pinjarra Cup two months later.
De Campo’s Pearl Quinella
Ace trainer-reinsman Aiden De Campo enhanced his reputation as one of the State’s best trainers of juvenile pacers when he landed the quinella in a thrilling finish to the $50,000 Team Bond Pearl Classic for three-year-old colts and geldings over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He made a wise decision to drive American Machine ahead of stablemate Amalfi Knight, with American Machine justifying his confidence by winning the Group 3 classic by a head from Amalfi Knight, who had won narrowly from American Machine in a qualifying heat.
“Amalfi Knight (driven by Dylan Egerton-Green) was huge, and he probably deserved to win,” said De Campo.
American Machine was the $1.60 favourite from the No. 3 barrier, with Amalfi Knight, starting from barrier five, the $2.50 second fancy.
Deni Roberts foiled De Campo’s plans of setting the pace by getting $11 chance Chugach away to a flying start from the outside barrier (No. 9) on the front line and bursting straight to the lead.
This left Amalfi Knight in the breeze, with American Machine enjoying a perfect sit in the one-out, one-back position. After a fast lead time of 35.1sec. and opening quarters of 29.6sec. and 30.5sec. the final 400m sections were run in 29sec. and 28.4sec., with American Machine rating 1.55.3 which was a race record, lowering the 1.55.5 rate set by Theo Aviator in 2019.
De Campo became the first driver to win the classic twice, following his victory with Seaside Magic 12 months earlier when that pacer beat Captain Stirling, driven by Egerton-Green.
Amalfi Knight took a narrow lead with about 120m to travel, and he fought on grimly to lose by a head from American Machine.
“I was a bit concerned when Chugach burst to the front,” admitted De Campo. “American Machine went quite rough into the first bend, and he had to pick himself back up. He is still raw and learning how to race, and he can rip and tear at times. But he has a heap of high speed and has a huge engine.”
American Machine is out of American Ideal and is the second foal out of unraced Art Major mare Majors Gem, an older sister of one of De Campo’s stable stars Menemsha, who has raced 51 times for nine wins, 19 placings and $383,938 in prizemoney.
American Machine, bred and owned by Craig Lynn, has earned $71,530 from three wins and four placings from 12 starts.
Miss Leopatra Smashes Record
New Zealand-bred pacer Miss Leopatra simply had too much speed for her eleven West Australian rivals when she set a solid pace to win the $50,000 Westral Diamond Classic for three-year-old fillies at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Prepared by Ravenswood trainer Cameron Ross and driven with supreme confidence by Jocelyn Young, Miss Leopatra, the $1.20 favourite, began from barrier three and burst to the front after 120m.
The polemarker Sovereign Jewel ($4.60) trailed the pacemaker all the way before running home with great determination to finish second, just one metre from the winner, who sprinted over the final 400m sections in 28.1sec. and 27.8sec. to record a smart rate of 1.55.1 over the 2130m journey which smashed the race record rate of 1.56.5 held jointly by Blockjorg (2020) and Water Lou (2024).
Miss Leopatra is by Bettors Delight but is far from being typical of the progeny of the champion sire who are predominantly dark bay, brown or black in colour, and are generally quite small in stature but sturdily built.
In contrast, Miss Leopatra is a big, tally filly with a massive white blaze and long white stockings on her hind legs.
Miss Leopatra has earned $70,568 and is set for bright future. “We are undecided about future plans,” said Ross. “She is lightly raced and we will let her get over tonight before we work things out.
“She is bright and fresh after her win tonight, and if there are suitable races in the next month or two, we might keep her in work. The Daintys Daughter Classic (September 18) and the WA Oaks (October 2) are likely to be the big targets for her.”
Fakenit, trained by Gary Hall Snr, won the Daintys Daughter Classic and WA Oaks last season, and she impressed with a smart win as the $3 second fancy in the $25,000 Westral Free-For-All for mares on Friday night when she began speedily for Gary Hall jnr from the No. 5 barrier and set the pace before winning by a length from the $2.45 favourite Copy Cat Queen, who finished powerfully from eighth at the bell.
Fakenit, who withstood an early challenge from $10 chance Captainshavtime, dashed over the final three quarters in 29sec., 27.9sec. and 28.5sec. She rated 1.54.9 and took her record to 16 starts for six wins, seven placings and $213,864.
“As a three-year-old one thing that Fakenit lacked was gate speed,” said Hall Jnr. “And tonight I was happy with the way she got out. She then hit a wheel a couple of times on the first bend, and that made her a bit keen, which wasn’t ideal with horses like Copy Cat Queen and Aardiebytheseaside sitting back.”
Changes Help Gee Heza Sport
A decision by trainers Greg and Skye Bond to change the working pattern for veteran pacer Gee Heza Sport and to race him for the first time with hood type blinkers in the Team Bond Minstrel Free-For-All over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night paid handsome dividends.
The New Zealand-bred eight-year-old was the $2.20 favourite from out wide at barrier No. 8, and he responded to the changes and ended a losing sequence of eleven when Deni Roberts drove him to a narrow victory, rating 1.54 over 2130m after final quarters (off the front) of 27.6sec. and 27.8sec.
Roberts was content to allow Gee Heza Sport to settle down in tenth position while $10 chance Sweet Pins was setting the pace. She sent the gelding forward approaching the bell and followed the three-wide run of $6 chance Menemsha.
Menemsha was struggling turning into the back straight, forcing Roberts to switch wider, and Gee Heza Sport was looking vulnerable in eighth place with 500m to travel. Gee Heza Sport moved to second at the 250m mark, but he appeared most unlikely to win when he was almost two lengths from the leader at the 100m mark and a length behind Sweet Pins 50m later.
However, Gee Heza Sport lifted courageously and surged strongly to get up and snatch a last-stride victory by a head over Sweet Pins.
Mrs Bond praised Gee Heza Sport’s fighting spirit, saying: “I thought he was a 20/1 chance on the home turn, and even half-way down the straight he didn’t look like he was going to get there.
“For older horses, sometimes a change is as good as a holiday. Sometimes they just go through the motions, and we weren’t happy with his Fremantle Cup run (a well-beaten eleventh behind Magnificent Storm late last month).
“He didn’t really find the line at all, so we changed his work and his head gear. We freshened him up and gave him a few gallops on the hard (track) rather than working him in the sand.”
Mrs Bond said that there were no plans for Gee Heza Sport to travel to Brisbane to contest the Interdominion series in July. “He is not a horse who is suited to back-up racing like he would have to in the heats of the Inters.
“We will pick a few Free-For-Alls for him over the winter months, and we haven’t yet decided whether to take Golden Lode and/or Minstrel to Queensland for the Inters series,” she said.
Roberts and the Bond stable completed a double on Friday night when New Zealand-bred four-year-old Rumble Strip, the $1.30 favourite, dashed to an early lead and went on to win the 2130m Westral Plantation Timber Shutters Pace by four lengths from $16 chance Rox The World.
Rumble Strip’s 20 starts have produced eight wins, six seconds and $81,890, and he has the potential to go on and become a top-class performer in the mould of Gee Heza Sport, who has earned $580,896 from 16 wins and 18 placings from 71 starts.
Im Massimo Resumes In Style
Victorian-bred pacer Im Massimo reappeared at Gloucester Park on Friday night after an absence of exactly one year when he lined up on the outside of the front line in the 2130m Westral Roller Shutters Pace and revealed the ability which could earn him starts in the rich feature events for four-year-olds in October and November.
He was the $2.30 second favourite, with Stormy Vista, having his first Australian start after arriving recently from New Zealand, the $2.15 favourite from the outside of the back line.
Im Massimo is a rising star in Justin Prentice’s Boyanup stable, and in recent weeks he has been under the care of Katie Lally while Prentice has been enjoying a fishing holiday in the south of WA, followed by a family holiday on Queensland’s Gold Coast.
Im Massimo, a giant Sweet Lou gelding who stands 16 hands tall and must weigh more than 550kg, was not produced in trials before his return to racing when Gary Hall Jnr sent him forward, out three wide, in the first lap to move to the outside of the peacemaker Take A Hike ($6.50).
After a third 400m section of 28.5sec. Im Massimo dug deep to forge to the front 250m from home before beating Take A Hike by a half-length, rating 1.57.9. This improved his record to four wins, four placings and stakes of $46,646 from ten starts.
“It was a huge effort by Im Massimo,” said Hall. “I didn’t expect him to do that much. He probably had to work too much early for a horse coming off a long break. I felt like I was a sitting shot at the top of the straight, and he had every right to finish third or fourth. It’s hat’s off to Katie for the work she has done with Justin away.”
While all honours were with Im Massimo, Stormy Vista, trained by Michael Young and driven by Emily Suvaljko, impressed with his strong performance at his Australian debut. He was in last place with two laps to travel before moving to seventh (three wide) at the bell and fighting on to finish third.
