Tyanna Belle gets second shot at Queensland Flame glory

By Alex Nolan

What Tyanna Belle lacks in size, she more than makes up for in heart.

So much so, the 25.4kg speedster has pulled her handlers head over heels on three separate occasions at the races and trials.

Her trainers Doug and Heather Gladman are now hoping she’ll harness all that strength and more on Thursday when she contests the $60,000 Listed Queensland Flame Final at Albion Park.

Tyanna Belle scraped into her heat last week as the first reserve.

Despite racing wide around both turns in the 520 metre contest, which was won by Shipwreck in 29.68 seconds, she ran on strongly to snare third and earn a second consecutive start in the Flame Final.

“It was a better run than it looked,” Doug said despite the 6.25 length margin.

“She’s quick early but all that pace inside her kept her wide on the turn.

“It’s not easy to sit wide in a barn dance, let alone at Albion Park.

“I’m so pleased for her and for Neil Demnar, who puts in plenty of work with her.”

The diminutive chaser was collared late by Extra Malt in a heat en route to contesting last year’s Final, where she ran fifth behind Spotted Elk after exiting box two.

She drew the same box this year at last Thursday’s draw, with noted fast beginner Tungsten Miss drawn to order in box one.  

Like last year, the winner of Thursday’s Final not only takes the prize money on offer but earns an invitation to take the Racing Queensland slot in next month’s $1.65 million The Phoenix at The Meadows.

While the likes of Shipwreck and De Ferran, along with Springtime Jet are commanding the bulk of market respect on Thursday, Doug Gladman says he expects plenty of sentimental money to be wagered on his little star.

“The only thing that annoys me about her is that she has a bigger following than me,” he joked.

“People ring me up, even my Doctor, asking me how she is going because they haven’t seen her for a while. She really does have a big following, she might not have on Thursday night because she was an enormous price.”

Indeed, it’s easy to see why punters have latched on to Tyanna Belle, who has earned just shy of $100,000 in prize money to date.

With a winning strike-rate of 35%, she has started single digits in betting markets in 65 of her 72 race starts.

That looks unlikely to be the case this Thursday, with Tyanna Belle winless over the 520 metres journey in her last 10 attempts.

The TAB has installed her the $31 second outsider in the field.

She has however continued her winning ways over the 395 metres at Albion Park during 2022, where she set the existing track record of 22.16 seconds by winning the Thunder Final in June last year.  

However, Doug said he was dreaming of Melbourne with the rising four-year-old, as he believes The Meadows will suit her down to the ground.

“I know it’s ‘dream time’ stuff but you never know, stranger things happen in racing,” Doug said of Tyanna Belle’s winning chances on Thursday.

“She likes curved tracks, which is why I’d love to get to The Meadows.

“She made up all the ground around the turn on Thursday night, even though she was wide. She’s one of those rare dogs that can accelerate on a turn.  

“If they make too many mistakes and she’s near the front, look out.”

The Gladmans have been based at Elimbah, north of Brisbane, for the past 11 years and Doug was instrumental in the push to change the lure colour to blue and yellow, after conducting research that found greyhounds responded best to those two colours.

The couple have raced the likes of good chasers Let’s Go Ozzi and Ramblin’ Rose, but it’s fair to say there will always be a special place in their hearts for Tyanna Belle, the little engine that could.

“She’s pulled three people over at the trials and I’m one of them,” Doug said.

“But from the time she gets out of the kennels to the track, she’s totally focussed.

“We love her, she’s a good little girl.”