Catch up on the week's harness racing action in our weekly review, thanks to Darren Clayton.
THE GOOD
The third running of the Peak of the Creek has seen the husband-and-wife combination of Pete McMullen and Chantal Turpin score victory, with the Somerset Farms team able to claim their second success in the race.
In that short time, the race has quickly developed into a calendar highlight, with the 2023 renewal arguably the strongest gathering of quality since the race was introduced in 2021.
With a small tweak to the series this season with heats held two days earlier on the Tuesday afternoon, four strong heats were assembled to chase a spot in the $52,000 Final.
Last Tuesday the four heats produced some slick performances and a spousal rivalry, with Grant and Trista Dixon each driving a heat winner, while Turpin and McMullen drove the winners of the other two heats.
With the barriers for the Final selected by connections with the fastest winner gaining first choice, it was the Turpin-trained Aardies Flash that was given pick of the board, following from is 1.51.7 heat victory.
McMullen did not need to think too hard in choosing barrier one for the talented three-year-old, while Grant Dixon had second pick for his gelding Aroda and after initially considering gate two, picked gate eight for the heat winner.
Ok Boomer, trained by Trista Dixon, had gate two selected, while the slowest of the four heat winners, Wisper A Secret, who is trained by Turpin, had the fourth pick and connections opted for gate nine.
As the barrier pulled away in the Final, McMullen did not hustle Aardies Flash out of the machine and was content to allow Ok Boomer to work to the front and take the trail, while Mossdale Terry for trainer and driver Shane Graham had a good look at the leader in the opening 300 metres.
Ok Boomer repelled the early challenge and was able to back off the pace through the second stanza, with 31.8 seconds appearing on the board before a steady 29 seconds down the back, meant those chasing from back in the pack were facing a mammoth task.
Turning into the home stretch, Mossdale Terry continued to dig in for the fight, while McMullen angled Aardies Flash into the passing lane.
Picking up once finding open space, the gelding rattled along the inside and had the speed to reel in the leader and pull clear to claim a 3.2 metre victory.
It was the seventh career victory for the gelding, who is owned by Mike Tanev.
Tanev is based in Canada but has experienced plenty of success over the past few seasons with horses he has exported to North America and those he has raced in Australia and New Zealand.
It was a double celebration for Turpin with the victory.
The win continued her excellent strike rate this season, bringing up 150 training wins for the year, the third successive season that the Somerset Farms team have reached 150 for the term.
With eight weeks remaining in the season, Turpin looks set to move past her benchmark season of 2022 where she recorded 157 wins, while her lead in the metropolitan trainer’s premiership is now out to 19 wins, with 61 next to her name.
THE BAD
“Sorry for beating the good horse”.
That was the comment Trent Dawson made to Leap To Fame’s owner Kevin Seymour following the victory of Future Assured in the Be Good Johnny Sprint on Saturday.
While the tongue may have been firmly in cheek with the comment, for Seymour, the defeat of 'Larry' was not all bad, as he and wife Kay are also the owners and breeders of the Dawson-trained Future Assured.
The four-year-old has taken big inroads as he has progressed from a talented performer, to now stamp his name as a genuine free-for-all competitor and might even climb higher yet.
Future Assured's win in the Be Good Johnny was his fourth successive victory, three of those now in open company, with his latest feature win resulting in claiming some impressive scalps.
From gate one, Dawson was hopeful that Turn It Up would be attempting an all-the-way victory and that is how it played out, with Shane Graham’s speedster finding the front with ease from his wide gate.
Keeping Hot And Treacherous parked to his outside, Graham pinched a steady second quarter of 30.5 seconds before getting busy down the back with a 27.5 second third split.
Turning for home, Hot And Treacherous was starting to feel the pinch, with track record holder Blacksadance easing three wide and looming, while Leap To Fame was strung up in traffic after being buried four back along the inside in the run.
Turn It Up tried to kick clear but with Future Assured finding open air along the passing lane, Dawson urged his drive and the gelding responded, charging through to reel in the leader, claiming a winning margin of a head.
With the closing panel in 26.7 seconds, the winning time was 1.51.8, with Blacksadance grabbing third and Leap To Fame missing out on a top-three at 'The Creek' for the first time in his career by finishing fourth.
Future Assured has now won 13 races from just 29 starts and took his stake earnings to within striking distance of $200,000, with the win all but securing his position in the upcoming Inter Dominion Series.
Ranked at 22 before Saturday’s race, he will rise some positions when the third rankings are released and provide Dawson with his first runner in an ID Series.
THE MILESTONE
Shane Graham landed a one-two punch in the first two races at 'The Creek' on Saturday night, training the winner of the first race and driving the winner of the second.
L L Cool J was back in winning form from behind the mobile in the opening race, with the seven-year-old partnered by Kelli Dawson, easing out from the trail at the 300 metre point and pulling clear to claim his 22nd career victory.
One race later and Graham was in the winners enclosure, this time as a driver after the Clayton Harmey-trained Saint Crusader overcame the outside second line to score.
Making a move with one mile left to travel, the four-year-old was three wide for the next 600 metres, before finding his way to the chair outside Rosberg.
Putting the leader away at the home bend, Saint Crusader was in for the fight and responded, gripping on for a head margin over the fast-finishing Young Conqueror which darted up the passing lane for trainer and driver Nikki Chalk.
The win gave Graham 100 driving wins for the season, 98 of those recorded here in Queensland with the other two coming at Menangle with the richly talented two-year-old trotter Agent Black.
Graham went into Saturday’s meeting on 99 wins after claiming a winning double at Albion Park on Friday thanks to victories by The Irishman and Sista Bliss.
In bringing up the triple figures, it was the 17th season that Graham has been able to snare 100 wins for the term, his best season coming in the 2014-15 year when driving 259 winners.
That season saw Graham the leading driver in the country, posting a five-win margin over Greg Sugars to be crowned the national premiership winner.
It has been a good season for Graham, bringing up career win 3,000 earlier this year and adding a further two Group 1 victories with a QBRED Triad victory behind Quik Change and a Queensland Oaks with Torque Like Motion, taking his tally to 10 at the elite level.
THE WILDCARD
The annual Graham Harriott Trotters Discretionary handicap at Marburg was taken out by the Trent Moffat-trained and Mathew Neilson-driven Natty Pagger on Sunday.
Harriott was a long-time committeeman and former president of the Marburg Pacing Association and also a deft hand in training square-gaiters.
After his death in 2012, the Harriott family and club have honoured his passion and commitment to the industry each year with the Graham Harriott Memorial Trotters handicap.
And, continuing that legacy as in previous years, two runners in the 2023 edition - The Emulator and Aladdin Sane - represented the Harriott family with the drivers wearing the green and white silks wore by so many of Graham’s winners over the years.
Trent Moffat had a strong hand in the 2023 edition, preparing three runners in the field, but had to watch on from the sidelines owing to a driving suspension.
Having partnered with Natty Pagger in recent weeks, Neilson had the reins behind the seven-year-old and had the gelding quickly into stride from the 30 metre handicap.
Pressing on with it, Neilson worked his way to the front within the first 500 metres and once in control was never headed, pulling clear for a big win.
Natty Pagger had been racing in consistent form of late, fully deserving of the win after finishing as the runner-up at his past four starts in succession.
It was the third Queensland victory for seven-year-old, with two of those wins when driven by Neilson and Moffat at the reins for the other.
With three runners in the race, Moffat also picked up third place with the three-year-old filly The Emulator holding on with driver Nathan Rothwell wearing the green, green and white checked band colours of the Harriotts.
Two-year-old filly Mira Saturn split the Moffat pair to hold second place for trainer and driver Ricky Gordon.
The win was the 18th training success for Moffat this season, his best season as a trainer, eclipsing his previous benchmark of 12 set last year.
THIS WEEK
Without any TAB racing on Melbourne Cup Day, the week ahead takes a different shape in Queensland.
Redcliffe will host their annual Melbourne Cup Day meeting with heats of the Cup Day at the Bay series conducted in a six-race card.
That will see 'The Triangle' race four times through the week, with the regular Wednesday night and Thursday afternoon fixtures complemented by a Sunday night meeting this week.
Albion Park will host just the two meetings this week, Friday afternoon and Saturday night, with all eyes focussed on the bumper card as the build up to the Inter Dominion continues.
The strong card on Saturday will include the Group 2 Queensland Cup, Group 3 Forever Gold for mare’s, the Bill Dixon, the Trotters Spring Sprint, a 3YO Fillies Feature, 3YO colts and gelding's feature and a 2YO feature.
