Stormy Vista Excels In Stands
Emerging four-year-old star Stormy Vista is the epitome of a standing-start specialist who will be seeking to enhance his reputation by winning the $30,000 BOTRA Cup next month.
The New Zealand-bred gelding has all the credentials to shine in stands, according to his admiring trainer Michael Young after his runaway victory in the Christmas In July Handicap at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“Stormy Vista likes the stands, and he will be set for the BOTRA Cup, a stand over 2503m (on July 17),” said Young. “He is a good stayer, who steps good, and the tempo in stands suits him.”
Stormy Vista was the $4.10 second fancy on Friday night and he began safely for Emily Suvaljko, who took him to the front after 400m. He gave his rivals little chance with final 400m sections of 28.7sec., 28.7sec. again and 28.6sec.
He went to the line full of running and easily beat $8.50 chance Maximum Rock by three and a half lengths, with the winner’s stablemate and $4 favourite Luvbite an impressive third.
Luvbite, driven by Kylah Madden, began from the 30m mark, raced at the rear and was eleventh with 550m to travel before he sustained a powerful three and four-wide burst.
“His was an awesome performance,” said Young. “And I think I will go to the Winter Cup (a Group 3 mobile 2536m event on July 10) with him. He is going good enough to get his chance against the Free-For-Allers who are racing at the moment.”
Seven-year-old Luvbite, a veteran of 158 starts, has won at four of his past six starts and looks capable of matching strides in mobile events with the State’s best pacers who are currently in work.
Stormy Vista has raced five times in WA for two wins in stands, and he has earned $64,335 from five wins and ten placings from 33 starts, 29 of which have been in stands. He is by boom sire Sweet Lou and is out Dream Away mare Belle Vista, who raced 46 times and managed four wins in minor events and ten placings for earnings of $33,552.
Poppyonthebeach Has Turned The Corner
A lot of hard work and patience from star Boyanup trainer Justin Prentice is paying dividends, with Poppyonthebeach finally overcoming her troublesome moods and erratic behaviour.
Poppyonthebeach, a $7.60 chance, dashed straight to the front from the No. 4 barrier and was rated well in front by Dylan Egerton-Green to win the $30,000 The Lewis Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
She beat Up And Alive ($11) by a length, rating 1.56.8, with another $11 chance Wave Rebellion running home strongly from seventh (on the pegs) at the bell to finish a head away in third place.
“Poppyonthebeach was hard to control and wasn’t much fun to drive early on,” explained Prentice. “She has always had plenty of ability, but she has been headstrong and a bit of a handful.
“Earlier in this preparation she had a couple of races in which she led and should have won but lost both times (when an odds-on favourite when second in 2100m events at Bunbury’s Donaldson Park in May). I have been trying to get her to pull the pedal back, and now all’s good and I’ve been happy with her past three runs.”
Poppyonthebeach was purchased at a Melbourne yearling sale in 2023 by Prentice, and she is raced by a big syndicate of Prentice’s stable clients. She is by Downbytheseaside and is the first foal out of Art Major mare Naamark, who was retired with a record of 24 starts for one win, six placings and $15,635. Her only success was in a minor event in Bendigo as a three-year-old in May 2020. Poppyonthebeach’s 16 starts have produced five wins, six placings and $57,398.
“Beating out Raklou (the $4.20 favourite) made our job a bit easier, and we didn’t have to do too much to do that,” said Egerton-Green. “I tried to keep Poppyonthebeach relaxed in front, but when Eastbro Chrissy came around (to the breeze) Poppy began to get on the chewy a bit, and I didn’t want to go that quick early.
“However, I was able to back off and from then she was too good for them. Her last 50 metres have been her worst and I thought if I could stay as far ahead of the good ones, she could do what she wanted to do and win. Actually, she fought on better than she has ever done.”
Prentice’s other runner in Friday night’s race, four-year-old Ruby Lovera ($8), was driven by Trent Wheeler, and she loomed as a major threat when she came from eighth at the bell with a fast move at the 700m to move to second 400m later. But she wilted and dropped back to finish sixth.
“Ruby Lovera was a bit disappointing,” said Prentice. “She let down well down the back and I thought she would get over the other girl (Poppyonthebeach). But she knocked up over the last little bit. Maybe she didn’t back up at her third start, three weeks in a row.”
Eastbro Chrissy ($5) faded to finish ninth, while Wave Rebellion gave further indication of having the ability to win many races.
Poppyonthebeach’s win completed a driving double for Egerton-Green, who was successful earlier with Im Lightning Banner, the $1.80 favourite in the 2130m Beau Rivage Pace.
Egerton-Green took advantage of the No. 1 barrier and Im Lightning Banner relished his pacemaking role and after final quarters of 28sec. and 28.2sec. the New Zealand-bred five-year-old won comfortably from Ultimate Miki ($3.30) and Our Crunch Time ($4.60), rating 1.55.7.
It was a long overdue win for Im Lightning Banner, who ended a 17-month drought and a losing sequence of 20. He has now earned $130,646 from nine wins and 13 placings from 41 starts.
Sweet Pins Looks A Cups Hope
Talented and lightly raced five-year-old Sweet Pins showed that he should be a leading contender in the upcoming Group 3 features, the Winter Cup and August Cup, when he crushed his rivals with a sparkling frontrunning exhibition to win the $31,000 $9 Swan Draught Pints Free-For-All over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Sweet Pins, the $3 second fancy from the No. 4 barrier, is trained by Gary Hall Snr and driven by Gary Hall Jnr, who went into the race uncertain of how the New Zealand-bred pacer would perform behind the mobile barrier.
Hall had restrained Sweet Pins at the start at his two previous appearances, and he said after Friday night’s win that the previous time he had attempted to win the start with Sweet Pins was when he began from barrier six in a race at Gloucester Park on April 24.
“I went to come out on him, and he nearly did a triple somersault on me,” he said. “So, tonight I was pretty happy after he jumped in front and was able to get away with an easy opening quarter of 31.6sec.”
Sweet Pins then ran the next three 400m sections in 28.9sec., 28.3sec. and 28.2sec. and won by three lengths from $51 chance and last-start winner Cams Boulder, who enjoyed a perfect passage behind the pacemaker. He rated 1.56.3 and improved his record to 23 starts for nine wins, five placings and $125,306 in prizemoney.
Munroes Mate, the $2.75 favourite from the No. 1 barrier, was beaten for early pace and raced in fifth position, three back on the pegs, before finishing sixth.
Cee Dee Three, trained by Shane Tognolini and driven by Kyle Harper, was a $55.60 outsider when he gave an outstanding performance to charge home from 12TH and last at the bell to score a brilliant victory in the 2130m Bridge Bar Pace.
His win made amends for his seventh behind Cams Boulder the previous Friday night when he bungled the start as a fancied $7.50 chance.
Cee Dee Three began from the outside barrier (No. 9) and Harper was content to give the horse an easy time at the rear before he unleashed his sparkling finishing burst which carried him to a one-length victory over Soho The Real Deal, with the $1.38 favourite Spitfire a half-head away in third place after working in the breeze as $7 chance Arista set the pace.
Cee Dee Three, a seven-year-old by Auckland Reactor, has raced only 31 times for six wins, eleven placings and $74,581.
Pocket The Change Bred To Succeed
New Zealand-bred mare Pocket The Change has raced in the shadows of her illustrious full-brothers No Outlaw and Pocket The Cash throughout her 81-start career.
However, she has proved to be an honest performer who notched her eleventh victory when Aiden De Campo drove her to victory as a $16 chance in the 2130m Free Entry Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Pocket The Change is prepared by Millendon trainer Sonia Zucchiatti, who has given the seven-year-old 32 starts for two wins, seven placings and $57,432 in stakes since she was purchased for $20,000 by South-West harness racing identity Rob Humphries and Victorian breeder and trainer Grahame Searle about 13 months ago.
“I jog up a lot of horses for owner Albert Walmsley and trainer Ryan Bell, and they were planning to send Pocket The Change to the breeding barn,” said Zucchiatti.
“Ryan then asked me if I wanted to train the mare for three months before she went to the breeding barn. It was then that Albert decided to sell her and he put her in an online sale, and the new owners got me to keep training her.”
Pocket The Change has performed well, and she now has earned $137,167 from 11 wins and 22 placings from 81 starts.
She is by champion sire Bettors Delight and is the third foal out of Ideal Pocket, who was retired after racing 13 times for two wins, five placings and $12,428. Her first two foals have enjoyed great successes on the track with No Outlaw earning $415,861 from 39 wins and 46 placings from 202 starts and Pocket The Cash racing 169 times for 30 wins, 61 placings and $342,029 in prizemoney.
No Outlaw won 22 times in America after 11 wins in Victoria and six in Queensland. Pocket The Cash won 15 races in Western Australia between 2019 and 2023 before winning twice in Queensland and 13 times in America.
Pocket The Change began from the No. 1 barrier on Friday night when De Campo was happy to take the sit behind the speedy $2.25 favourite Charivari, who set a solid pace before Pocket The Change finished strongly to win by a length from the fast-finishing Holy Hecka ($8.50).
Yarloop trainer Shane Steele drove aggressively to land $5.20 chance Me Flash a strong winner in the 2130m Meet Up Before The Game Pace. Me Flash went forward from the outside barrier (No. 8) on the front line and worked hard outside the pacemaker and $3.90 favourite Catch The Red Eye before going on to win by a length from $7.50 chance Maddy Rocks, who ran home well from seventh at the bell.
Serpentine trainer Matt Scott enjoyed a quinella result in the Garrard’s Pace over 2130m when Barbados ($9.50) won by three lengths from Gee Smith ($34). The quinella dividend was $109.70.
Barbados, the polemarker driven by Ajay Markham, trailed the frontrunning Soho Confidential ($6.50) and gained a dream inside run when that pacer shifted out about 500m from home. Gee Smith trailed Barbados throughout the race before finishing solidly.
Manuka Bay Is An Oaks Hope
Inexperienced New Zealand-bred filly Manuka Bay was so impressive in winning the 2130m Beau Rivage Pace for three-year-olds at Gloucester Park on Friday night that her driver Deni Roberts predicted she would be an ideal candidate for the $150,000 WA Oaks on October 2.
“She is a very strong filly, not particularly tall but she is a bit of a tank,” said Roberts. “I think that the 2536m Oaks will suit her down to the ground.”
Roberts was particularly pleased in the way Manuka Bay beat the well credentialled New Zealand-bred gelding Lincoln Lover, who dead-heated for second with the WA-bred filly A Precious Gem.
“I know that we got away with a slow time early (a 39.8sec. lead time followed by opening quarters of 32.7sec. and 31sec.) but she could have gone a lot quicker. And she is also really quick at the start.”
Manuka Bay, trained by Greg and Skye Bond, was the $2 favourite from barrier two, and she had no difficulty in jumping straight to the front and dictating terms at her first appearance for two months.
Lincoln Lover, a vastly more experienced pacer having his 21ST start, battled on gamely after racing in the breeze, while A Precious Gem, a winner on debut at Pinjarra early on the previous week, did well to run on gamely.
Manuka Bay is by Downbytheseaside and is the third foal out of New Zealand mare Miss Big, who raced 21 times for four wins, three placings and $26,100.
Manuka Bay completed a training double for the Bond stable, following the success of Thelittle Master in the 2130m Book Into Steelo’s Pace.
Thelittle Master, driven by Kyle Symington, was a $4.20 chance who appreciated the No. 1 barrier when he set the pace and was untroubled to win by more than two lengths from $5.50 chance Saifa, who trailed the pacemaker all the way.
Thelittle Master, unplaced at his previous eleven starts and going into the race with a losing sequence of 14, has been a good moneyspinner, having earned $206,176 from 12 wins and 20 placings from 72 starts.
