Ken Casellas | PACEPIX
It would take a major earthquake to shake ace trainer Colin Brown’s faith in his star filly Im Category Five, the tough and talented daughter of Typhoon Tiff.
Despite drawing out wide at barrier No. 7 in the $100,000 Trotsynd Diamond Classic for two-year-old fillies, Im Category Five is poised to run a mighty race in the group 2 feature event over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Brown trained and drove Typhoon Tiff when she was the $2.10 favourite in the two-year-old Diamond in June 2018 — when she began from barrier six and was trapped four wide early before racing three wide for the rest of the first circuit and then working in the breeze outside the pacemaker Majorpride.
Typhoon Tiff fought on grimly to finish a half-neck second to Majorpride, and she was retired to the breeding barn two years later after having earned $205,673 from eleven wins and five placings from 24 starts.
Her second foal is Im Category Five, who has impressed with her three wins and two placings from five starts. Im Category Five will be driven by Brown’s daughter Maddison, who handled the filly in a qualifying heat on Monday of last week.
Im Category Five began from barrier five and raced wide early before working hard in the breeze outside the pacemaker Crunchnsip and hitting the front on home turn and winning by 2m from the fast-finishing Shoo Boozy, rating 1.58.8.
The gross time for that heat was 2min. 37.2sec. which was faster than the times recorded by the other two heat winners — Wishing Belle (2min. 37.9sec.) and Ma Petite Dame (2min. 38.1sec.).
Deni Roberts, who drives Crunchnsip for champion trainers Greg and Skye Bond, is delighted that the Captain Crunch filly has drawn the coveted No. 1 barrier.
“She has good gate speed, so we will be trying to hold up at the start, and then have options after that,” she said. “She pulled up quite fat after her third in the heat, and she worked pretty good today (Tuesday).”
Star trainer-reinsman Aiden De Campo has high hopes of winning with Wishing Belle, who outclassed her rivals in her qualifying heat in which she began from barrier seven, settled at the rear and then made a fast three-wide move to burst to the front after 550m. Wishing Belle coasted to victory, beating Sovereign Jewel by more than six lengths, rating 1.59.3.
Wishing Belle is a daughter of former star mare Libertybelle Midfrew, who raced 51 times for 19 wins, eleven placings and $640,497 in prizemoney. Wishing Belle, who has won at five of her six starts, will start from the No. 6 barrier.
“It’s not the best barrier, but not the worst, either,” said De Campo who drove Tricky Styx to victory in the two-year-old Diamond in 2014. “We will work forward and see what happens,” he said.
Last year De Campo drove Copper Head Lady for Baskerville trainer Ryan Bell in the Diamond Classic. The filly, a $3 chance, galloped at the start from the No. 2 barrier and covered extra ground before finishing a splendid third in a three-way photo finish from Ruby Lovera and Bettagetonpip.
Bell trains and drives Ma Petite Dame, who will start from the inside of the back line in Friday night’s classic. Ma Petite Dame is by American stallion Bettors Wish, who is also the sire of Wishing Belle.
Ma Petite Dame dashed straight to the front from barrier five in her qualifying heat in which she set the pace and sprinted over the final 400m in 28.7sec. to win comfortably from the Colin Brown-trained The Sea Siren, rating a modest 1.59.5. That was her second win from five starts.
“I’m happy to have drawn barrier ten, but realistically she is only a place chance,” said Bell. “She is better than she was going into the heat after an interrupted preparation.”
Gary Hall Jnr, who has won the Diamond Classic for two-year-olds with Before Night Falls (2008), Cimorene (2017), Majorpride (2018), Askmeilltellya (2019) and Always An Angel (2020), will drive Perfect Miki for ace Boyanup trainer Justin Prentice.
Prentice, who has trained the winner of this event with Lady Luca (2016), Majorpride (2018), Always An Angel (2020) and Ruby Lovera (2024), will be pinning his faith in Perfect Miki, who will be driven by Hall from the outside barrier (No. 9) on the front line and will be at liberal odds after being unplaced at her four starts.
Shannon Suvaljko, who won this event with the brilliant Water Lou in 2023, will drive the Mike Howie-trained Maas Attack, who is favourably drawn at barrier two on the back line. She has had three starts for a win and two placings.