Speak The Truth ready for Leap To Fame battle

Shannon Price knew her stable star Speak The Truth was going to clash with the brilliant Leap To Fame at some stage and says it may as well be this week.

The boom four-year-old pacers of the Sunshine State are set to meet on Saturday evening at Albion Park ahead of their 2023 Constellations Carnival campaigns.

Speak The Truth – who was recently unveiled as a runner in the inaugural The Hayden – won on a wet evening at Menangle in late April at his most recent race appearance. 

The black gelding returns to the track in the Sunshine State on Saturday to tackle the reigning Queensland Harness Racing Horse of the Year – Leap To Fame.

There were plenty of questions around where the Grant Dixon-trained and driven superstar would next start and that was eventually settled on Saturday’s 2138 metre contest.

“We have to face him at some time so we thought it may as well be this week,” Price said on Mobile Rolling on Radio TAB about Leap To Fame.

“He is a hard horse to beat and now he has the barrier draw advantage, which makes it even harder. He is the benchmark.”

The $350,000 Group 1 Rising Sun-bound Leap To Fame has drawn two for Saturday with Speak The Truth’s regular reinsman Adam Sanderson set to commence from three.

The multiple Group 1-winning conditioner Price says her nine-time career victor will be able to land wherever he likes in the run.

“He has a lot more gate speed this time in and he showed that in his trial from barrier seven,” she said.

“It is up to the horse. He is a smart horse who tells you exactly how he is feeling and he will tell Adam when the gates open.”

Speak The Truth showed his fighting qualities at his last start when he survived a strong finish from the chasing pack to win in the driving rain at Menangle.

“He went good but he could have gone better on a dry track,” Price said.

“My guy is first-up after five weeks on Saturday night so you cannot say he is 110 per cent race fit.

“But, it is one of those things, he is a horse that surprises us as we did not expect him to run the time he did in his trial first-up recently after 11 months.

“We knew he had come back very good at that point.”

Speak The Truth is likely to head to the Patrons Purse at Redcliffe following Saturday’s race before looking towards The Rising Sun and then the first-ever The Hayden.

Also on Saturday night at Albion Park, a hot field will line up in the Listed Flashing Red Discretionary Handicap for 2023.

Quality Kiwi pacer Hot And Treacherous landed in the Sunshine State at Jack Butler’s property earlier this year with one big goal in mind and will take a step towards it in the Flashing Red.

The top New Zealand standardbred came to Queensland with Inter Dominion ambitions for his new trainer and connections.

Hot And Treacherous will be driven by the leading reinsman in Australia on Saturday, Nathan Dawson.

“We are happy, he is heading in the right direction,” Butler said.

“We have to start somewhere heading towards the carnival and I am sure he will make his presence felt.”

After serving mares during the most recent breeding season, champion pacer Colt Thirty One returns to black-type action in the Flashing Red.