Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Mister Smartee is ready to go and poised for a powerful performance in the $50,000 Governor’s Cup over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night, according to his driver Gary Hall Jnr.
The brilliant five-year-old, who reappeared after a 15-week absence when a wilting fifth behind Magnificent Storm in the 2569m Bunbury Cup last Saturday week, will begin from the No. 4 barrier on the front line in the group 3 Free-For-All.
“It’s a good race and I’m glad we have drawn inside Magnificent Storm (barrier six),” said Hall, who has won the Governor’s Cup with Chicago Bull (2018), Rocknroll Lincoln (2019) and Wildwest (2021).
“We will press forward (at the start) and see where we end up. I’d say we will end up in the breeze with either Otis (barrier one) or Sangue Reale (three) probably wanting to lead. If that’s the case, I’ll be happy to breeze.
“In the Bunbury Cup I drove him to win when he probably wasn’t fit enough to be driven like that (in the breeze). Mister Smartee should definitely be better for the run, and I’m hoping that he can turn the tables on Magnificent Storm (in what is likely to be his final race before contesting the $1.25 million Nullarbor slot race in a fortnight).
Mister Smartee is prepared by Hall Of Fame trainer Gary Hall Snr, who has won the Governor’s Cup with Chicago Bull, Wildwest and Diego (in May 2023). The New Zealand-bred gelding has won at 15 of his 19 starts and his last-start fifth was only his third unplaced performance.
Magnificent Storm is a champion pacer, a superb eight-year-old who has earned $1,140,772 from 37 wins and ten placings from 60 starts. He has come back after a 15-month absence while recovering from an infected knee in splendid form.
He resumed with a first-up third behind Sangue Reale and Minstrel in the Mount Eden Sprint at Gloucester Park on March 17 and then won the Bunbury Cup twelve nights later when he began from the back line, raced wide early and then in the breeze before bursting to the front and setting the pace on the way to an outstanding victory.
He is prepared by veteran horseman Ray Williams, who won the Governor’s Cup in 2014 and 2015 with Pacific Warrior, and prepared outsider Cyclone Banner when he was a fast-finishing third behind Wildwest in the 2021 Cup.
Champion trainers Greg and Skye Bond, who won the 2017 Governor’s Cup with Our Jimmy Johnstone, will have two runners in this week’s Cup, with Deni Roberts driving Mighty Conqueror from the favourable No. 2 barrier and with Stuart McDonald in the sulky behind Tenzing Bromac from out wide at barrier No. 8.
Ten-year-old Mighty Conqueror has resumed after a seven-month absence in fine style with Gloucester Park thirds behind Justcallmemiki and Tenzing Bromac and a last-start fast-finishing fourth in the recent Bunbury Cup.
Sangue Reale, trained and driven by Chris Voak, finished second to the frontrunning Diego in the 2023 Governor’s Cup after trailing him throughout. He will start from the No. 3 barrier, with Voak saying that the nine-year-old had hit the line well when fourth behind Wonderful To Fly in a 2130m Free-For-All last Friday night.
“He pulled up a bit big, but has trained on well,” said Voak.
Boyanup trainer Justin Prentice has Mighty Ronaldo pacing in excellent form with placings behind Steno, Minstrel and Tenzing Bromac at three of his past four outings.
Prentice has engaged star Sydney reinsman Will Rixon to handle Mighty Ronaldo for the first time in a race. The WA-bred gelding is awkwardly drawn out wide at barrier seven and he will give the 24-year-old Rixon valuable experience of driving him on the comparatively tight Gloucester Park circuit before the seven-year-old contests the Nullarbor slot race next Friday week.
Rixon, who has driven 40 winners this season, had two drives at Gloucester Park on December 1st, 2023 when he finished ninth with the $1.20 favourite My Ultimate Ronnie, who worked hard in the breeze with Hoppys Way setting a fast pace and finishing a half-head second to Wonderful To Fly in the Group 1 Four-Year-Old Classic, and finished seventh behind Floewriter with $31 chance Cut N Run in a minor event.
Serpentine trainer-reinsman Dylan Egerton-Green will be looking for a solid effort from the polemarker Otis, who has stepped up nicely to open-class company with his past three outings resulting in a fifth behind Minstrel in the Pinjarra Cup, a fourth behind Sangue Reale in the Mount Eden Sprint and an excellent third behind Magnificent Storm and Waverider in the Bunbury Cup.