Hall praises Hugotastic
Exciting New Zealand-bred pacer Hugotastic is poised to make a successful debut at Gloucester Park despite a back-line draw in the $23,000 Garrard’s Horse And Hound Australia and NZ Pace on Friday night.
The five-year-old is prepared by leading trainer Michael Young and will be handled by Gary Hall jnr, who was deeply impressed when he drove the gelding to a brilliant victory at Pinjarra last Monday week.
“That performance showed that he is very fast,” said Hall. “I pulled out down the back (after racing in the one-out, one-back position) to try to get up there and get level with them (the leaders). I gave him an inch of rein and he dashed straight past them.
“The track was very fast, and I think he broke 26sec. for that quarter, which was fairly motoring for a restricted class horse.” Hugotastic rated 1.55.7 over the 2185m journey and won by 14m from the pacemaker No Noney.
Hugotastic, whose 14 New Zealand starts produced three wins and seven placings, will begin from the No. 2 barrier on the back line in Friday night’s race, with Hall saying: “We should have plenty of time to get into the race.”
Hugotastic, who is by Sweet Lou, is a half-brother to Bettor Get It On and Mr Fantastic, who were guided to several wins in WA when driven by Hall. Bettor Get It On (51 starts for 11 wins and 19 placings for stakes of $191,675) won the group 3 Coulson Pace in December 2021 and the group 2 Empress Stakes in April 2022 before Emily Suvaljko drove her to victory in the group 3 Laurie Kennedy Pace in February 2023.
Mr Fantastic won easily at Bunbury in July 2021 at his Australian debut, and he won the group 3 Higgins Memorial at Gloucester Park in July 2022. He has a record of 52 starts for 14 wins, eight placings and $156,207.
Hugotastic’s toughest rival on Friday night is expected to be the Shane Gaebler-trained No Noney, who will be driven by Chris Lewis and will start from the inside of the back line. He is racing in splendid form, with his five appearances after a spell producing four seconds and a third placing.
Hall and Young also have excellent winning prospects with another Sweet Lou gelding, the WA-bred four-year-old Blaze Away, who will start from the outside barrier (No. 9) in the $23,000 www.horseandhound.com.au Pace over 2130m.
Blaze Away notched his fifth win from 15 starts when he dashed to an early lead and set a brisk pace before winning by more than three lengths from At The Pointy End over 2185m at Pinjarra on Monday of last week. His five starts in his current campaign have resulted in three wins at Pinjarra and third placings at Gloucester Park and Northam.
“Blaze Away will need a bit of luck from the wide draw,” said Hall. “But he’s not weak and his Pinjarra win was impressive.”
At The Pointy End, to be driven by Denni Roberts for champion trainers Greg and Skye Bond, will begin from the outside of the back line. She finished strongly from eighth at the bell when second to Blaze Away at Pinjarra.
Thelittle Master is in the zone
Star driver Deni Roberts is confident consistent four-year-old Thelittle Master will prove hard to beat after drawing the prized No. 1 barrier in the $31,000 Garrard’s Westbred Autumn Feature Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He rarely runs a poor race, and last Friday night he began from barrier four before getting to the front after 250m and then setting a solid pace and being swamped in the final couple of strides to finish a close third behind Menemsha and Magnus Victor.
“Thelittle Master went really good and is very much in the zone,” said Roberts. “I’ll try to get him out as quick as I can and try to lead. He felt really good in himself last week, and even though he has been racing for a while it was the best he has felt in a warm-up for me. He felt sharp, and usually they get out of the gate better when they’re like that.”
Thelittle Master, prepared by leading trainers Greg and Skye Bond, will clash with Menemsha and Magnus Victor again this week.
Joey Suvaljko will again drive the Aiden De Campo-trained Magnus Victor, who poses the most serious threat to Thelittle Master. He was most impressive last week when he began out wide at barrier eight and was eighth at the bell before charging home.
Princess Katie has struck top form for trainer Michael Young, and she will also have admirers, particularly considering her favourable barrier at No. 2. She began from out wide at barrier eight last Friday night and worked hard in the breeze for much of the way when a fighting second to the frontrunning Sweet Vivienne.
A week earlier Princess Katie raced wide early and then without cover before winning narrowly from Hunt The Magic, rating 1.56.8 over 2130m.
“Princess Katie was super last week in what was probably her career-best run,” said reinsman Gary Hall jnr.
The Bond stable and Roberts also will be favoured to notch another victory with star four-year-old Justcallmemiki, who has created a tremendous impression with easy wins at his first three appearances in Australia, all over 2130m at Gloucester Park.
Justcallmemiki, who has relished his role as pacemaker in his three WA wins, will begin out wide at barrier seven on Friday night, with Roberts saying: “The plan will probably be endeavouring to stay ahead of our dangers, Montana D J (barrier eight) and Hillview Bondi (nine).
“They look like our two dangers, so I’ll probably have to press forward from barrier seven and hold a forward spot.”
Vanderbilt looks the goods
Mt Helena trainer Ray Williams has the consistent pacer Vanderbilt racing in wonderful form and the New Zealand-bred five-year-old should give punters a flying start at Gloucester Park on Friday night by winning the opening event, the $25,000 Garrard’s Horse And Hound Autumn Series final over 2130m.
Vanderbilt, who’s past five starts have resulted in two wins and three seconds, will be driven by Aldo Cortopassi and will start from the No. 6 barrier. He pulled hard when racing three back on the pegs and was still good enough to win easily from Chillin at a 1.55.7 rate over 2185m at Pinjarra last Monday week.
He should again prove the master of Chillin, who will start from the No. 2 barrier on the back line, with Gary Hall jnr in the sulky. “He is not going quite as good as he can but is still a chance,” said Hall.
Williams also has sound winning prospects with Star Casino in the $27,000 Call Garrard’s Horse And Hound For All Your Equine Needs Pace over 1730m.
Star Casino, who has a losing sequence of 14, is the only runner on the back line and will be driven by Dylan Egerton-Green, who said: “He is my best drive at the meeting and is a very good chance. He is getting better with every run and will be right there.”
Star Casino fought on determinedly from eighth at the bell to finish fourth behind Soho Santorini last Friday week when the final 800m in the 2130m event was covered in 55.9sec.
Williams has high hopes that Magnificent Storm will prove hard to beat in the $50,000 Bunbury Cup when the millionaire pacer makes his first appearance at Donaldson Park. He reappeared after a 15-month absence when he finished a close third behind Sangue Reale and Minstrel in the 1684m Mount Eden Sprint at Pinjarra on Monday of last week.
Magnificent Storm will begin from barrier three on the back line and clash with Mister Smartee and other star pacers, including Mighty Ronaldo, Mighty Conqueror and The Miki Taker.
Mister Smartee, trained by Gary Hall snr, has won at 15 of his 18 starts and will be racing for the first time since winning the group 1 Golden Nugget last December. He will begin from barrier two on the back line.
Reinsman Gary Hall jnr predicts a strong first-up performance from Mister Smartee, saying: “He is working super and I’m really happy with him. Obviously, he will need the run, but I still think that whoever beats him will win.”
The Justin Prentice-trained seven-year-old Mighty Ronaldo’s recent efforts, including his last-start half-head second to Tenzing Bromac, when he set the pace, have been most encouraging.
Mighty Ronaldo will be having his fourth start in the Bunbury Cup, following his victory over Vultan Tin in 2022, his third behind Diego in 2023 and his fifth behind Jumpingjackmac in 2024.
Miller likes Beatitlikebeca
In-form reinsman Mitch Miller has a high opinion of Beatitlikebeca, a winner at only one of his eight starts, but with abundant ability and the promise of bigger and better things to come.
Beatitlikebeca is trained by Kim Prentice and has to overcome the disadvantage of starting from the outside of the back line in the $31,000 Garrard’s Here On Track Three-Year-Old Autumn Series final over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
However, Miller is confident that Beatitlikebeca, a colt by former star pacer Soho Tribeca, will make a bold bid for victory, saying: “He’s not quite a racehorse yet but he’s got a fair bit of ability.
“I think he is a winning chance provided he gets a nice run into it. He is definitely as good as the rest of them.”
Beatitlikebeca will be having his third start after a spell. He was a first-up third behind Fakenit at Gloucester Park on March 4 before finishing second to stablemate Lou Lamour over 2242m at Narrogin ten nights later.
“First-up, I sat Beatitlikebeca in the one-out, two-back position before being held up behind a couple of the slower ones, and then he took about 20 metres off Fakenit in the final 400m after losing twenty,” said Miller.
“Then he went to Narrogin (and driven by Corey Peterson) he ruined his chances by flogging the wheels the whole race.”
Peterson trains and drives Manhattan Ruby, one of the main fancies in Friday night’s event. She is a smart filly by Soho Tribeca, who has impressed with easy all-the-way wins at her past two outings --- rating 1.56.1 when she beat Pinny Noir by three lengths over 1730m and rating 2.1.9 at Pinjarra and was not extended when she sprinted over the final quarters in 28.5sec. and 27.5sec. to beat Its Crunch Time by more than three lengths over 2190m at Northam.
Martin trainer-reinsman Lindsay Harper gives Spyglass a strong winning chance in the final event, the $31,000 Garrard’s Service With Integrity Pace over 2130. The seven-year-old will start from the No. 5 barrier in the small field of seven.
“He looks a good chance,” said Harper. “It would have been nice to have drawn better, but he should still go okay. He had no luck at his latest start (seventh behind Soho Santorini two Fridays ago) when he was tenth at the bell and was inconvenienced in the final circuit before finishing fast, out six wide.
