Catch up on the week's harness racing action in our weekly review, thanks to Darren Clayton
THE GOOD
Trent Dawson had waited almost 20 years to claim his first Group 1 victory as a driver and it also happened to be his first as a trainer, after Talent To Spare was successful in the 3YO Fillies Triad in May 2021.
The wait for his second win at the elite level took just 15 months when the Dawson-owned, trained and driven, For Real Life took out the two-year-old colts and geldings Triad Final on Saturday night at The Creek.
Yet the wait for his third, was just 65 minutes in the making after Magical Maya made it a magical night for Dawson with a Group 1 winning double.
Two-year-old colt For Real Life (pictured) was a Redcliffe yearling sales purchase in 2021, with Dawson outlaying $18,500 – what now seems a modest sum for a Group 1 winner- to secure the For A Reason colt.
“I’ve always loved him since day go,” Dawson said in the lead-up to Saturday night.
Having finished second to Tardelli in the Redcliffe Sales Final in June, For Real Life qualified for the Triad Final and was not required to contest the Heats, instead going into the rich decider with a sharp trial hit out.
Off the back of that trial, Dawson had his confidence boosted even further when his colt landed gate 1 for the Group 1 Final.
“His race at Redcliffe, where he run second there to Tardelli, respectfully, I don’t think there is any Tardelli’s in the race on Saturday night and if he can do what he did at Redcliffe, I think they will have a hard time running him down,” Dawson said.
“I don’t think anyone has the speed to cross me and my intention at this point is to take them all the way”.
Dawson tackled the race confidently and led from gate 1 and For Real Life secured the opening quarter in 28.6 seconds before he slammed on the brakes and pinched a 32.1 second split.
With the race favourite Frankie Ferocious forced to work hard outside of For Real Life, and with a controlled third quarter in 28.5, Dawson let his colt slide.
With a 27.4 closing panel, For Real Life held off fast-finishing My Ultimate Jacko for a half-head margin, however, ‘all-clear’ was delayed.
Brendan Barnes, driver of My Ultimate Jacko, lodged a protest, alleging interference on entry to the passing lane.
However, stewards were satisfied that My Ultimate Jacko was not impeded to the extent that warranted a reversal of placings and declared For Real Life the winner.
Just two races later Dawson made it a Group 1 double and third career victory at the elite level when he led all the way aboard Magical Maya (pictured) in the three-year-old fillies Triad Final.
Given no peace through the middle stages out in front, Magical Maya displayed her strength, pulling clear at the top of the home stretch to record a five-metre win.
The winning mile rate of 1.55.8 was a race record and eclipsed the mark set in Dawson’s maiden G1 victory in this race in 2021 when Talent To Spare won.
THE BAD
Ben Crosby has only held a trainer’s licence since the 2019/20 season and leading into Saturday’s QStars night he had never had a Group runner.
Despite limited experience, Crosby could boast the tidy figures of 18 winners from 91 starters prior to Saturday, with his three runners all starting in Group 1 features.
In fact, the full brothers Frankie Ferocious and Captain Shuffles were both expected to perform highly and were sent out as the race favourite in their respective events.
Frankie Ferocious was the first to race for Crosby in the two-year-old colts and geldings Triad Final and his first Group 1 runner as a trainer started $2.30 favourite.
However, For Real Life led throughout while Crosby’s runner worked hard outside the leader throughout to finish third.
Waterline was the second to step out for Crosby and, after landing gate 1, expectations were high for the filly to fill a minor placing behind Bernie Hewitt’s star pacer Jewel Melody.
Despite securing an economical trip, Waterline faded to finish seventh.
Crosby’s last hope was Captain Shuffles, driven by Shane Graham, in the three-year-old colts and gelding Triad Final.
Fortunately for Crosby, and favourite backers, Captain Shuffles (pictured) led throughout to secure a powerful victory in a mile rate of 1.54.3.
It was a race record and eclipsed the 1.55.0 recorded by Manila Playboy when it secured the 2021 Triad Final.
Securing his maiden Group 1 training victory, Crosby took his record to 13 wins from just 34 starters this season at the impressive strike rate of 13%.
The win proved a handy pick-up drive for Graham. He secured his first Group 1 since steering Manila Playboy to last year’s Triad victory, to pick up his eighth career Group 1 win.
Meanwhile, the win extended Captain Shuffles record to 7 wins from 11 starts, with the talented gelding likely to head for a break and the early season four-year-old features at Menangle firmly on the radar.
THE MILESTONE
The strong form of Jack Butler continued last week when became the first Queensland trainer to reach 100 wins for the season.
The century was brought up at The Creek on Tuesday when Saginaw overcame the outside second line gate to score a smart victory over the 2138-metre journey.
Saginaw has been a work in progress since arriving with Butler, his ability equally matched by gaiting issues and for possessing a knack for finding a way to get beaten.
Owned by a group headed by Summit Bloodstock, Butler and the Summit team have joined for multiple winners this season, headed by Deus Ex and Saginaw (pictured).
Consistency has been the key for the Butler stable this season, turning out winners at a strike rate of 17%, the highest it has reached since relocating to Queensland and regularly producing winners at both Albion Park and Redcliffe.
Having won the opening race at Redcliffe the previous three Wednesday nights in succession, Butler was thwarted from making it four straight by daughter Chloe, who trained and drove Everything Happens to victory by a head from Jack’s runner Zaras A Treasure.
Making it 101 for the season on Thursday with Joey Lincoln, Butler backed it up with a double at The Creek on Friday courtesy of Targaryen and Father Christmas.
The win of Targaryen in the up to NR70 Final was slick with the gelding rating 1.51.9 in blitzing his rivals by more than seven metres.
Placings to My Ultimate Jacko and Dangerzone, in their respective Group 1 Triad Finals on Saturday, resulted in Butler ending the week on 103 wins to extend his lead in the State Premiership to 16. Grant Dixon and Chantal Turpin are in equal second with 87 wins each.
THE WILDCARD
Jewel Melody is, without doubt, the best two-year-old filly in Australia this season and can now boast a record that places her in the top echelon of all time for her age group.
Claiming her fourth Group 1 victory this season in the two-year-old fillies Triad Final, the Bernie Hewitt-trained filly was dominant in recording a 13-metre win.
The emphatic victory was recorded in a rate of 1.53.6. It took 1.3 seconds off the race record held by Jiggle And Jive and the only ever two-year-old Triad winner to record a faster winning time- ‘boys or girls’- was Expensive Ego who rated 1.52.9 in his 2019 colts and geldings victory.
Jewel Melody owners, Wayne and Julie Loader have invested heavily in the sport over the past four years with the results starting to flow this season.
The Bathurst couple has now had six wins at the elite level in 2022, with four won by Jewel Melody complemented by a pair claimed by their three-year-old gelding Ripp, with both pacers trained by Hewitt.
It has been a fruitful campaign in Queensland for Hewitt, who has enjoyed success away from the cold winter of the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, and he says Jewel Melody, pictured winning easily, is the best juvenile he has prepared.
“I’ve had a lot of nice 2YO fillies over the years that have done a great job and won a lot of features, but she just keeps banking the money and winning those Group races and she is by far and away the best now,” said Hewitt.
Heading back home to Georges Plains (near Bathurst) following Saturday night’s success, Jewel Melody will have a three-week spell before being set for a Breeders Challenge campaign in November.
“Hopefully all things being equal that she develops into a nice mile and a half mare next year, and then we can look at some of the feature races like the Oaks and so forth around the place.”
THIS WEEK
It will be a full week in Queensland with races at three tracks.
Albion Park will host three meetings for the week, with Tuesday’s card a capacity 12 race programme, highlighted by the Triad Consolations for each sex of the two-year-olds and three-year-olds.
Friday is a night fixture for The Creek with Saturday night’s metropolitan meeting seeing the Final of the most recent NR90 Series along with a $20,000 Ultimate Tools-sponsored three-year-old event.
Redcliffe will start the week with a nine-race card on Monday night followed by a Wednesday night and Thursday afternoon meeting.
Grass track racing is back on the calendar this week, with three races to be held at Kilcoy on Saturday. The races are run in conjunction with the thoroughbred meeting to be held at the Moonee Valley of the North.
Nominations for Kilcoy close on Wednesday, with the three races to run before the thoroughbred fixture starts and each race, will carry a QBRED cash bonus for eligible winners.