Fitness factor and quick start keys for Lucky Llama

By Wayne Heming

Townsville trainer Heath Ardle will be banking on the ‘fitness factor’ to help his black dog Lucky Llama significantly boost his career prizemoney earnings with victory in the QGOLD Final at Rockhampton on Wednesday night.

The winner will take home just over $10,000 of the $15,400 prizemoney allocated to the winner by Racing Queensland in a race restricted to greyhounds bred in Queensland.

Lucky Llama, jumping from box one, was nabbed close to the winning post in his heat by outsider Early Supper after he dashed clear into the straight.

The winner, friendless in betting at $101, came with a wet sail after looking well and truly beaten coming to the home turn, resulting in a major boilover.

“He (Lucky Llama) should be better for that run last week,” Ardle said.

Ardle has enjoyed great success in QGOLD races in recent years.

“He’s only been on the walker at home for the last month because it’s been too wet to run him," Ardle said. 

“He has to jump quickly from the five box in that field, that’s the key.”

Ardle wasn’t into speculating on Lucky Llama’s winning prospects. 

“I just enjoy watching my dogs run, to be honest,” he said.

Ardle expects a far less dramatic trip from his training outpost near Ayr this week. 

Last week was touch and go as to whether he even attempted the trip.

In the end, he enlisted the aid of a neighbour with a low-end loader to help him negotiate the floodwaters. 

“I’d say it’ll be a bit more pleasurable this time than the last trip,” Ardle said with a laugh.

Ardle loaded six dogs into his ute and put it on the low-ender to get through floodwaters so he could make the 700km trip south to 'Rocky' last week.

“Once I got through Ayr, down through Proserpine and past the Airlie Beach airport I was able to drive the ute with the dogs the rest of the way,” he said.

Apart from the QGOLD Final, one of the highlights of the Rockhampton meeting will be the appearance of in-form greyhound Play Dirty who will be shooting for his 20th career win and his 12th victory in a row.

A total of 10 of the recent wins have been at Rockhampton, five over Wednesday night’s 407 metre distance.

The Dallas Beckett-trained and Sonia Davis-owned Dirty Play hasn’t been beaten since August last year when seventh at Shepparton in Victoria behind Derogative as a $2.50 favourite.

Like his trainer, the Speed Star and Sapphire Ruby dog is in his twilight years, but both are firing.

Play Dirty hasn’t lost since Davis transferred him north to her friend Beckett to train after the chaser lost form in early 2024.

Since then he has gone unbeaten. Play Dirty will start from box eight in race seven over the 407 metre journey.

His best time is 23.21 seconds, which will make him awfully hard to beat.