Ken Casellas | Photo: Gloucester Park Harness Racing
Talented reinsman Chris Voak has given punters a strong lead by choosing to drive Sheza Bromac in preference to the highly-regarded four-year-old Miss Boudica in the $30,000 TABtouch Coulson Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“It appears an open race,” said Voak, who is sure to be anxious to take advantage of the prized No. 1 barrier by setting the pace with the six-year-old Michael Munro-trained Sheza Bromac, who has scored four all-the-way victories at Gloucester Park and another one at Northam.
“Sheza Bromac was a last-start sixth (behind Pivotal) in a stand at Narrogin when she lost 50 metres and finished about 10m from the winner,” said Voak.
Miss Boudica, trained by Michael Brennan, will be driven by Dylan Egerton-Green from barrier two on the front line in the 2130m event. She has worked hard in the breeze before fading to the rear at her two starts in her current campaign and is certainly capable of considerable improvement.
Mundijong trainer Michael Young holds a strong hand in the race in which Miss Serenade (Maddison Brown) will start from barrier five, and Nevermindthechaos (Gary Hall Jnr) is poorly drawn on the outside (No. 9).
Miss Serenade warmed up for her assignment when she set the pace and was headed by Tellmetoattack 300m from home before fighting back to regain the lead and win by a half-length from that pacer in a 2536m event at Gloucester Park on Tuesday night. That improved the four-year-old’s record to 27 starts for nine wins, seven seconds and one third.
Young said that he considered four-year-old Nevermindthechaos had better winning credentials than Miss Serenade, saying: “We have the best horse (Nevermindthechaos) in the race, but have got the worst draw. If she had a (good) draw she would’ve been a certainty. However, it is not impossible, and I still give her a winning chance.”
Nevermindthechaos resumed after a spell when she finished last in a field of twelve behind stablemate Eighteen Carat in the group 2 Christmas Belles last Friday night. She was restrained from barrier eight, raced at the rear and was unable to gain a clear passage in the final lap. “She was cruising in the home straight and the ear plugs were not pulled,” said Young.
One of the popular runners on Friday night is the Barry Howlett-trained four-year-old Three Rumours, who will start from the No. 4 barrier with Chris Lewis in the sulky.
Three Rumours raced roughly soon after the start of the Christmas Belles and settled down in last position before she sustained a determined three-wide burst from the rear at the bell to finish an encouraging fifth behind Eighteen Carat.