Wheeler on board Simply Shaz NZ Photo by Pacepix
WA Harness Racing’s nice guy Trent Wheeler is just one win away from an impressive 600-win milestone and this weekend could be the one to get him there.
The recently turned 40 reinsman jumped two wins closer to the milestone at Pinjarra on Monday after notching up win 598 on board the Brian Clemes trained Agent Andy at $91 odds, then doing it all again two races later when he steered home Sea Fury for trainer Michael Brennan, taking him to just one win away from the elusive 600.
Wheeler is the first to admit he wasn’t the best of drivers when he first started out, but dedication to his craft and determination to improve not only saw him evolve as one of the best country drivers here in WA but the ‘Collie King’ has hit the big league, sitting in seventh spot on the Leading State Driver premiership.
“When I first started, I didn’t think I would drive one winner, let alone 600.”
Trent currently sits just nine wins shy from 100 winners for the season with around seven weeks to go for 2024.
At just 17-years-old, Wheeler made his debut on the 4th of August 2001 on board Brut Imperial for his dad Brian Wheeler where the pair finished in ninth placing.
It wasn’t until just over a year later that he drove his first winner at Narrogin on the 29th of November 2002 on Mystical Mover for trainer G Sheret, with Wheeler getting three winners that season.
In 2009 he drove his first metropolitan winner, Pandemic, who was trained by fellow Collie local Peter Hemsley. The pair won 17 races together.
Claiming his first group 1 in 2015 on board Once Bitten for his dad Brian in the 3YO Fillies Westbred Classic, Wheeler describes the win as his biggest thrill in the industry, but he has since gone on to win a further three Group 1 races with Pinny Tiger winning the 4YO Classic in 2022, Simply Shaz NZ in the Mares Classic in 2023 and Reinette taking out the 2YO Fillies Westbred Classic in September this year.
Since making his debut 23 years ago, Wheeler has had a total of 7150 starts and stares down the barrel of his 600th winner going into this weekend’s races.
Wheeler heads to Gloucester Park tonight with five drives on his books including the Gary Hall Snr trained Tommy Waterhouse NZ who’s drawn in barrier two in the second on the card currently sitting at $3.60 odds on the TABtouch fixed odds.
Hoping to get his 600th winner beforehand, he admits that Write Rite Right looks his best chance on paper, racing at Collie on Sunday in the opening event, but Tommy Waterhouse NZ is also a chance tonight at Gloucester Park.
From tonight through to Gloucester Park this coming Tuesday, Wheeler has 28 drives over the five meetings in WA.
Goodluck Trent.
Ashleigh Paikos
