Ken Casellas | Photo: Hamilton Content Creators
Former New South Wales performer Cherishthememories has enjoyed very little luck at her first four starts in Western Australia, and she has bright prospects of breaking through for an overdue victory and ending a losing sequence of eleven when she starts from the No. 2 barrier in the 2130m The Game Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Trainer-driver Jocelyn Young will be keen to get Cherishthememories to the front as soon as possible and allow the five-year-old to enjoy her favourite role as a pacemaker.
The Sportswriter mare certainly has the necessary gate speed to cross to the front, particularly as the polemarker Im Themightylucy is having her first start for three months and is best known as a sit-sprinter.
Cherishthememories has won eight times in NSW, with six of them being when she has set the pace, four at Penrith and two at Menangle.
She led when a short half-head second to Mea Culpa at Pinjarra three starts ago, and then has been forced to work hard at Gloucester Park on the past two Friday nights for a head second to Star Of Diamonds followed by a fighting third behind Nevermindthechaos and Star Of Diamonds.
Cherishthememories began a three-wide move 550m after the start and took the lead 500m later when she was overtaken in the final couple of strides by Star Of Diamonds, and last week she raced wide in the first lap before getting to the front — and then was a sitting shot for Nevermindthechaos and Star Of Diamonds.
Four-year-old Im Themightylucy shows excellent promise and is capable of a bold first-up showing. She won once from three New Zealand appearances and has won at six of her nine WA starts. She is trained by Michael Young, who has a good second string runner in Friday night’s race in Little Suzie, a winner of two races in New Zealand, one in Victoria and two from seven WA starts.
Im Themightylucy will be handled by Maddison Brown, while Stuart McDonald has been engaged to drive Little Suzie.
Young will have a strong following in the opening two events on the program in which her stable runners Rocknroll Elliot and Valentines Brook look hard to beat. She will drive Rocknroll Elliot from barrier eight in The West Australian Pace over 1730m, and Kyle Symington will drive Valentines Brook from the No. 4 barrier in the 2130m Sunday Times Pace.
Rocknroll Elliot started from barrier six and had a tough run in the breeze before taking the lead 400m from home in a 2130m event last Friday night when he took the lead at the 400m and fought on grandly when second to Mea Culpa.
Valentines Brook ended a sequence of five second placings when he raced wide early and then without cover before winning easily from Lil Happy Fella over 2536m on Tuesday of last week.