GO WEST U TERROR TO END SLIPPER HOODOO

Brilliant reinsman Gary Hall jun. is bubbling with confidence that Go West U Terror has the speed and strength to end a hoodoo and win the $125,000 Premier Suzuki Golden Slipper Stakes at Gloucester Park on Friday night.

“He’s got the speed to lead, he’s tough and he’ll take plenty of beating,” Hall declared.

But for the Bryan Cousins-trained gelding to win he will have to buck the considerable odds and end a hoodoo on short-priced favourites in the prestigious Golden Slipper.

Hot favourites have failed dismally in this classic over the past nine years. The list makes frightening reading: Only two of the past nine favourites have managed to be placed.

The most recent favourite to win the Slipper was Disco Force, who won stylishly by five and a half lengths from Lombo Matahorn in 2000.

The fate of the favourites since then has been terrible. The flops from 2001 have been Wirrpunda (7/4 on), Your Call Lombo (11/8), Slick Operator (5/4 on), Touch My Pocket (5/4), Perfect Spring (evens), Talk To Me Courage (6/4), Argent Treasure (6/4 on), James Matthew (10/1 on) and David Hercules (7/4).

The only two of the past nine favourites to be placed have been Talk To Me Courage and James Matthew.

Talk To Me Courage was badly hampered for room in the final circuit before getting clear late and finishing an unlucky third behind 25/1 stablemate Aikido Whitby and Barjohbil in 2006.

And in 2008, James Matthew, aiming to stretch his unbeaten sequence of ten wins, was beaten a nose by 7/1 chance Aussie Reactor. James Matthew became fired up after a false start and after racing four wide for the first 350m and then getting to the front 270m later, he pulled fiercely.

Hall said he breathed a big sigh of relief when Go West U Terror drew barrier five for this week’s group 1 classic, with the highly-promising Ohokas Bondy drawing the No. 7 barrier.

Go West U Terror and Ohokas Bondy are the only New Zealand-bred two-year-olds in the Slipper field and they are poised for a tremendous duel. The better barrier draw should ensure that Go West U Terror starts favourite ahead of Ohokas Bondy.

“I’m happy with the draw,” Hall said. “I think that Go West U Terror has the speed to hold out Ohokas Bondy and Go West UI Terror has always done what has needed to be done to win. And he’s run some good times, too.”

Hall said that he felt that Go West U Terror was a bit lack lustre when he was untroubled to set the pace and win by a length from Batavia Jack in a four-horse  Breeders Crown qualifying heat over 2170m at Pinjarra last Monday week.   

“Bryan said that he had been a bit easy on him and that was his first run for almost a month,” Hall said. “Bryan has stepped up his work and he should be spot on this week.”

Go West You Terror has won at six of his eight starts and two starts ago he set the pace and won the $100,000 Pearl Classic by ten lengths from Soho Dionysus.

Ohokas Bondy, trained by Greg Bond and to be driven by Colin Brown, has been extremely impressive at his first two Australian starts, winning by 22m at Narrogin and then beginning brilliantly from barrier five, bursting to the front after 250m and going on to win by five lengths from Who Thru Teddy over 2130m at Gloucester Park last Friday night.

Admirers of Ohokas Bondy will point out that the gelding rated 1.59.5 last Friday night and that before his Pinjarra victory at a 2.2.4 rate, Go West U Terror had won three in a row over 2130m at Gloucester Park, rating 2.0.3, 2.0.9 and 2.0.1.

It was seven years ago that Brown dashed Cousins’s bid to win the Golden Slipper when he drove the Noel Keiley-trained Western Apache to a thrilling win by a nose over Global Force, who was trained by Cousins. Brown is the man now standing in the way of Cousins and Go West U Terror.

Chris Lewis holds the record of Golden Slipper wins by a reinsman, having won the classic six times --- with Pardon Me Boys (1987), Harry Gunn (1995), Saab (1997), Talladega (1999), The Jobs On (2004) and Aikido Whitby (2006).

Lewis will handle Bettors Ace, who will be having his first run for Oakford trainer Ross Olivieri after being prepared earlier in the season by Keiley and Shannon Suvaljko.

Bettors Ace shows excellent potential and he impressed in winning the $50,000 Champagne Classic from Scot Bay on May 7. It is significant that Go West U Terror finished fifth in that event.

Olivieri and Lewis have combined three times to win the Slipper, with Harry Gunn, Saab and Talladega.

Scot Bay has drawn nicely in the Slipper at No. 3. He is a handsome, upstanding colt with the ability to cause an upset. He has had 11 starts for Manjimup trainer Debra Sutton for six wins and three seconds.

 IM THEMIGHTYQUINN LOOKS A CERTAINTY

A sizzling trial at Byford on Sunday showed that star pacer Im Themightyquinn is close to peak form and a virtual certainty to win the Premier Suzuki Swift Sport Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.

Leading trainer Gary Hall sen. said that his son, Gary Hall jun., did not ask the five-year-old for a really serious effort in the 2550m standing-start trial.

“He was only out there to just do pacework and he was completely unextended,” Hall sen. said. “Gary didn’t push him out early and we didn’t want to rev him up.”

However, it was an extremely impressive workout. Im Themightyquinn started from 20m and settled down more than 45m behind the early pacemaker Lots Torque before Hall moved him into the one-out, one-back position in the middle stages.

Im Themightyquinn  started a three-wide move 550m from home and burst to the front 100m later before cruising home to win by seven lengths from Mister Hannible, rating 2.3. He dashed over the final 800m in 57sec.

Im Themightyquinn will start from 30m in Friday night’s event over 2503m and he should prove too strong for his 11 rivals, including Mysta Magical Mach, who will start from the back mark of 40m at his second appearance after an injury-enforced absence of nine months.

Morgan Woodley will resume as Mysta Magical Mach’s driver and the five-year-old is capable of considerable improvement after finishing last behind stablemate Has The Answers in a 1730m sprint last Friday night.

Hall sen. explained why he took Im Themighyquinn to trials last Sunday after the gelding had performed in superb style at his two runs after resuming from a spell, winning brilliantly first-up and then finishing a most unlucky second to Has The Answers after suffering severe interference at the start.

The Guildford track where Hall gives his pacers their fast workouts is being re-surfaced and Im Themightyquinn needed a hoppled run.

And Hall also explained why Im Themightyquinn was nominated for a standing-start event while his main mission this campaign is the mobile Miracle Mile in Sydney in November.

“I didn’t enter him for the $20,500 mobile event over 2130m on Friday because I wanted to dodge Has The Answers because Im Themightyquinn would have drawn outside of him because of dollars earned at his past three starts,” he said.

 SHEER ROYALTY IS ON THE COMEBACK TRAIL

Sheer Royalty, a dual group 1 classic winner last year, will take her second step on her comeback trail when she contests the Premier Suzuki Kizashi Pace over 1730m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.

Hazelmere trainer Mike Reed was pleased with her first-up effort when third behind Xupan Three and Golden Bromac over 1730m at Gloucester Park last Saturday night.

“She pulled up well and I’m very happy with her progress,” Reed said. “I think she is two or three runs away from her top, but with luck in running on Friday night, she’ll be hard to beat.

“She was out three deep for the last lap and a bit last Saturday night and the last 800m was covered in 57.7sec.

“Sheer Royalty hurt a muscle in her back and pulled up sore after winning the Sires in May of last year.”

Sheer Royalty, who had worked hard before winning the WA Oaks a fortnight before her victory in the State Sires Series for three-year-old fillies, was spelled after the Sires and resumed racing last October when she finished third at Northam and fourth at Gloucester Park before having another spell.

She started from the outside barrier last Saturday night and fought on solidly, three wide, from ninth at the bell to be third to Xupan Three, who rated a slick 1.56.1 over the 1730m.

Sheer Royalty, to be driven by Mark Reed, is ideally drawn at barrier two on Friday night in an even filed which includes in-form mares Parsonemby, Copper Beach Girl, Gross Misconduct, Magiclittlepartner, Nullabor Song, Sheer Dreams and Sickle Mond.

 CHRIS LEWIS PASSES THE MILESTONE OF 4000 WINNERS

It was business as usual for Chris Lewis after he had driven a copybook race to land his 4000th winner at Gloucester Park on Tuesday night.

“It was a good feeling to get up and win with Secret Interlude and to tick over another milestone,” a smiling Lewis said after the Kevin Keys-trained mare had stormed home to snatch a thrilling victory over Turbo Diesel and Running On Rumours in the City of Perth Pace over 2096m.

Cool and calculating, Lewis drove Secret Interlude, the 5/4 on favourite, with great patience before he timed her finishing burst to perfection.

Secret Interlude, the sole backmarker off 20m, raced in eighth position before she charged home, four wide, down the home straight to hit the front in the final couple of strides.

After a brief celebration with his wife Debra, Lewis was back doing what he does best --- and that’s driving winners.

He had two more drives at the meeting and won with both of them.  He was successful with the Ross Olivieri-trained Jordangarry, who set the pace and won by a half-length from Charcoal Jack in the 2503m Ross North Homes Pace.

And then he finished the meeting by bringing the Keys-trained three-year-old filly Rich Life home with a well-timed burst from second-last at the bell to win the 2536m Schweppes Pace from Colour Me Cam.