Ken Casellas | Photo: Pacepix
New Zealand-bred pacer Youre So Fine, out of action for 19 months while recovering from a damaged tendon, has resumed racing for champion trainer Gary Hall Snr in grand style and is developing into a serious contender for the rich classics for four-year-olds later this year, with his main target being the $200,000 Golden Nugget on December 15.
Youre So Fine improved his comeback record to four starts for four wins when he unleashed a devastating late sprint to charge to a most impressive victory in the $23,000 Cowden Insurance Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Youre So Fine was the $3 second favourite when he started from the outside barrier in the field of nine. Gary Hall Jnr was perfectly happy to let the gelding relax in last position while the $23 chance Withoutthetuh was setting a brisk pace, with the $2.65 favourite Watts Up Sunshine working in the breeze.
Watts Up Sunshine got his neck in front 420m from home but was unable to cross the frontrunning Withoutthetuh. These two pacers locked sulky wheels, lost ground and caused interference to other runners on the home turn.
Shannon Suvaljko then dashed the $5.50 chance Whos The Dad to the front with 100m to travel. But Youre So Fine, seventh on the home turn after following the three-wide run of Mr Fantastic from the 700m mark, sprouted wings and charged past Whos The Dad 40m from the post to win by 2m at a 1.56.5 rate over 2130m.
“He was brilliant; really good,” said Hall Jnr. “And he should measure up for the feature races for four-year-olds. Originally, he was bought from New Zealand and was aimed for the WA Derby last year, but he went amiss.
“He still would have won tonight if there hadn’t been that interference, and he should keep getting better.”
Youre So Fine showed considerable early promise in New Zealand, winning the Group 2 Diamond Creek Classic over 2200m for two-year-old colts and geldings at Invercargill in May 2021. That was his only win from three New Zealand starts before coming to WA where his first start was a third placing behind Tricky Miki in the Golden Slipper at Gloucester Park in July 2021.