GREYHOUND DERBY

AUTHOR: Star Sports Content

EMILY WALLIS: Greyhound Derby Blog 6

EMILY WALLIS continues her weekly blogging of the 2023 Star Sports Greyhound Derby which reaches the quarter final stage at Towcester on Saturday …

⭐ It’s hard to believe I’m already on my sixth blog and we are fast approaching the quarter-finals stage of the Derby. It is certainly flying by and we already have our last 24 dogs. The third round was certainly an exciting one, we saw some fantastic performances and some unfortunate exits but we still have a talented last 24 and four very classy races to look forward to on Saturday night!

⭐ We had some very hot weather for the third round which is set to continue, it is lovely enjoying the sunshine whilst in the Towcester stands but extra precautions do need to be taken for the dogs in the hot weather and vet Polly Smith goes above and beyond as always giving the best of care to the dogs and making sure they are all well in the heat. In the paddock the kennels are well air conditioned, there are pools for them to cool down in and water all around the track for the dogs. In an interview with Carly Philpott on Saturday (below), Polly says she goes back to the kennels of the dogs that have run to make sure they are recovering properly, she is a real credit to Towcester and the sport.

⭐ From eight third round heats on Saturday there was a 50/50 split of English and Irish winners. The action was kicked off by another stunning performance from the ante-post favourite Swords Rex winning by over 11 lengths, it certainly was a great run on the eye but a much less expected result was Brinkleys Magic going 14 spots quicker than Swords Rex in the second heat. Magic has perhaps been a slightly frustrating dog for the Tom Heilbron kennel only winning twice in the UK before the Derby, but his electric 28.21 A1 win at Newcastle tells you he has all the speed in the world; in the second round he picked up Romeo Hanzo (pictured below) to win but this week there was no messing around as he came out the traps well and led all the way, Clona Duke turned second to him but couldn’t get anywhere near with Magic winning by over seven lengths. I feel he is a dog you can’t rule out as he can come from behind like he showed in the second round and he has every chance of qualifying on Saturday.

⭐ The fastest third round winner wasn’t Brinkleys Magic as in the next race Romeo Command (pictured below) put up 28.75, Patrick Janssens certainly would have been over the moon to see him trap out in front and lead all the way as so far he’s had to come from behind to win the first two rounds and when he did lead on Saturday it was just a case of how far. His record in the UK is simply outstanding and if he could keep trapping like he did he could come very close to overall success but he’s going to be hard to keep out of the frame as he’s a strong dog and he’d be a popular finalist with lots of ante-post bets on him. Although 8 1/2 lengths behind Romeo Command, it’s just great to see Kevin Hutton’s homebred Signet Otis still in the hat for the next round, we know he’s special to Kevin and Donna and has proved a fantastic competition dog for them and no one would begrudge him a qualifying spot.

⭐ The track perhaps seemed to slow down a little as the heats went on but that didn’t stop Barrie Draper’s Distant Podge from recording a fast 28.96. He seemed to have lost his trapping boots in the first couple of rounds although I was really impressed with how hard he battled for third in the second round, however on Saturday it was like watching the same Podge that we saw impressively winning those trial stakes before the Derby and he might just be coming right again at the right time.

⭐ In my blog last week I said I thought heat 7 of the third round was particularly hot, we had a very impressive winner in Burj Khalifa who showed some really nice back straight pace to pick up Signet Goofy at the third bend and he went on to a five length win, there was a lot going on in behind and unfortunately we lost two big players in Maree Champion and Signet Goofy who just couldn’t hold onto a qualifying spot from some strong finishers. The betting suggested it was an unexpected result with Burj Khalifa priced at 8/1, Jacktavern Bella at 7/1 and Cochise (pictured below) also 7/1. However take nothing away from Burj Khalifa he won on merit and really did show some great pace, he’s also got the advantage of being only one of two wide seeds left so he is guaranteed his draw and should be getting clear runs. On him, Damian Mathews said “We are delighted with his progression throughout the Derby, we’re looking forward to the quarter finals and we’re glad to be in trap 6. Obviously Romeo Command who has won 12 races from 13 has to be really respected but qualification this weekend to get into the semi finals would be a dream come true.”

⭐ In the last heat it was sibling rivalry with Fabulous Azurra and Romeo Magico drawn next to each other and it was unfortunate to see the defending champion not qualify for the quarter finals, Nicola Firmager took to Twitter to say “Sad to see our defending champion go out of the competition so soon. Takes nothing away from what he’s achieved. Magico will always hold a special place in our hearts. What a dog.” However, Fabulous Azurra for Patrick Janssens ran a blinder to pick up Mystical Mario who also ran well showing lots of early pace and connections will be delighted to still be there on Saturday.

⭐ Trainer Richard Rees still has two dogs taking their place on Saturday with Drive On Lad and Cochise, both are strong dogs and seem hard to keep out of the frame as they showed in third place on Saturday night in the third round. Cochise proved in the first two rounds that when he leads he won’t easily be caught and the same would go with Drive On Lad who can’t quite show the trapping ability and early pace he did in the Maiden Derby but is running well to keep qualifying. On their two runners Charlie Rees said “Cochise is running well and we were pleased to see him qualify from a tricky race on Saturday night. I would prefer him to be drawn a little bit closer to the rail in the next round but with a bit of luck we can get a clear run. Drive On Lad did very well to qualify as he looked in a tricky position round the first bend but he is coming home really strong, I don’t mind him in trap 3 but Ballymac Marino in trap 2 is a worry. They have both done great to get to this stage regardless.”

⭐ You’d have to say the draw for the quarter finals has worked out well with the top four dogs in the market with Star Sports all drawing different races. Three railers have drawn trap 5, Romeo Command who a lot would think is smart enough to overcome the draw, Cochise who has carried a middle seed for most of his career anyway and Gaytime Nemo who has been moving off from the fence in previous rounds. All four races are still extremely tough and it is starting to get close to the final stages of the competition, it is certainly a gutting time to not qualify but the field once again has to be halved for the semi finals.

⭐ As well as the Derby to enjoy on Saturday we also have some supporting competitions starting, of course there is the Derby Plate for greyhounds that have been knocked out of the Derby in the first three rounds and the Greyhound Trader Stakes for greyhounds purchased via Greyhound Trader, both are for 24 greyhounds so there will be 4 heats of each on Saturday along with the Derby quarter finals. It’s guaranteed to be a cracking card from start to finish and not one to miss as it all starts to feel very close to finals night.

⭐ As always, a massive good luck to anyone connected to a greyhound in the Derby this Saturday! Enjoy it as we are in the latter stages now and all dogs have done fantastic to get there, I certainly can’t wait to watch the racing on Saturday and find out our semi-finalists.

I’ll be back next week,

EMILY WALLIS

📷 Thanks to Steve Nash Photography for feature image.

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