It was an amazing afternoon of chasing action at the Manukau Stadium on Sunday where a strong support card served as the appetizer to the dramatic action that was to unfold in the $30,500 Formpro Amazing Chase match races.
Pictured: Clockwise Rap with race handler Mellissa Redshaw
Many of those races was sponsored by companies/individuals who directed their support to the Amazing Chase benefiting charity KidsCan. The $6,000 Quix Plumbing Supports KidsCan Stakes was the feature open class 527m race.
The event developed into a full on, race long paw wrestle between the favoured pair contenders Clockwise Rap from the Phil Green kennels and the Denis Schofield trained consistent Manukau Sunday 527m performer Lochinvar Brogue.
The duo matched strides going down the back straight, with Clockwise Rap holding the rail position. She refused to flinch, gamely sticking to her task when digging in deeply which saw her being rewarded with her 30.94s feature race victory. There was just a neck separating the two greyhounds at the judge.
Delivering the race of his career was the reserve runner Beautiful Boy who really stepped up to the mark when sighted running on to claim third another 1.75 lengths further behind for his conditioner Ben Craik. He was also required to fend of a challenge to his placing when he held the Lisa Cole prepared Spare Some Time at bay by a neck margin.
Quix Plumbing Supports KidsCan winner Clockwise Rap; runner up Lochinvar Brogue and third placed Beautiful Boy
The feature $3,500 Hydroflow Supports KidsCan Sprint saw Bigtime Opal pinging straight into the race lead from where she dictated terms to her rivals when scampering clear to nail her easy 18.49s 318m sprint win by a 5.25 length margin for the nation’s leading conditioner Lisa Cole.
Jump Up got himself handy to the early pace after jumping from the tricky five trap, which saw the Hayley Mullane trained consistent sprinter pressing on stoutly to claim second. He held a 3.25 length advantage over the brave recently reinstated open class sprinter Hallo Star from the Ross and Lynne Udy kennels.
The Steve Clark trained Yeboah overcame a fair amount of early jostling to finish just a neck behind in fourth. There was an early sensation when his kennelmate, the warm race favourite Nitrology bombed the race start from the ace trap. He displayed slick pace when quickly recovering along the rail, however his race was all over when he was severely checked.
The stayers contested their feature $5,000 Thayne & Dorothy Green Distance 603m event which resulted in an easy pace making victory for the Greg Hore and Peter Fergusson mentored Alzheimer’s. She defied her rivals to run her down, however nothing else got close to her as she cruised to effortless 4..5 length victory, stopping the clock in 35.32s. She has proven to be a very tough greyhound to get past when she adopts her freewheeling pace setting tactics.
It was race on for the minor podium positions which resulted in the Matt Roberts trained Silky Socks out finishing Loose Unit from the Steve Clark kennels by half a length. Both stayers were involved in the vain chase throughout after the race winner.
It was vacant post race podium following the running of the $5,000 I Pave Supports KidsCan Stakes owing to the race winner Ima Lucky Zarr being injured when she copped a check and falling just after the race finish. It was a gutsy effort by the Jared Udy and Denise Cottam trained greyhound to cling on for her head win after contesting the pace throughout the journey. She clocked 31.01s for her 527m assignment.
It was the Lisa Cole prepared Bigtime Welldone who charged home late when coming up a head short. Arriving just a length further behind was Jinja Squeak for Wayne and Tracy Steele and he held the same margin over the Phil Green trained fourth placed Electric Dee Eye.
Amazing Chase feature support card race winners were (from left): Bigtime Opal with handler Georgia Cole, Alzheimer’s with Peter and Wendy Fergusson; Ima Lucky Zarr (pictured here after a previous win)
There was numerous other solid performances witnessed during the meeting. Here’s pictorial round up from those races
Denis Schofield made a strong start to the meeting by producing the first two winners Fantastic Lucy (left) who won the C4 318m dash while Zipping Kasey prevailed in the first of the C1 527m races; The exciting Hayley Mullane trained Cristiane Cyborg maintained the impressive start she has made to her racing career when she landed her sixth win from just eight races in the C1 527m feature final
Hayley Mullane, pictured here with her mum Marie, made it back to back training wins when Pretty And Pink also helped herself to a C1 527m win; Jinja Bella impressed when delivering her bold pace making C2/3 527m win for Wayne and Tracey Steele and she is pictured here with second placed kennelmate Opawa Kuru, handled by Tracy with the winner being attended to by daughter Mellissa; Maximum Express from the Phil Green kennels was handled by Cynthia Earley for his C3 318m win; the meeting concluded with the inform Ben Craik prepared Just One Smile taking out the other C3 dash, seen here with handler Tracy Craik, race co-sponsor Ben Rogers along with owners Ray Waters, John Roberts and Sel Loader
By Peter Fenemor
