Strong Heats Assembled For SA St Leger

Three heats of the SA St Leger will be the showcase on the Thursday night card at Angle Park this week, with plenty of inform chasers set to line up, as well as a few interstate chasers that have made their way over.

The airborne Rasmussen kennel will have nine runners across the three heats, with one of those being the emerging Bernardo Bowl, who is set for his toughest test yet in his short career.

His recent form has been almost faultless, having won 6 of his last 7 starts over a range of different tracks and distances. Having previously shown a lack of strength at the backend of 500m, his 30.89 victory at Gawler showed that he can run the trip out well and he will be needing to translate that strength that he showed there, if he is to take out the heat.

It’s a strong heat that the son of Bernardo Bowl has come up with, and from box seven it will be a tough challenge, as his co-trainer Lisa Rasmussen concedes.

“He’s going good, can’t really complain!” said Rasmussen

“I don’t really like him out in that draw in that field, just because there's plenty of pace and a couple of wide runners underneath him, two of them are ours! So we’re just a bit worried about him getting over”

“Well we will find out! (how he will run 500m), now he’s had a bit more work and matured a bit.”

“Probably Victa Alby (the best chance), or Victa Marli if she can lead and get a bit of a break.”

Manuel Stuppos will have his first ever city starter on Thursday night, when Master Wayne returns from a 1 month spell off the back of a 19.76 win over the short course trip.

He’s a dog that has always shown ability and has won 5 starts from his 19 career races, but this will be his first venture to the 500m distance, which will pose a good challenge.

The box draw has been kind to him for the grade 6 event, coming up with box one and a couple of wide runners drawn outside, but he will need to come out quickly if he is to make the most of it.

“After he won at Angle Park over the ‘340’ I gave him a trial and he didn’t go very well, he’s always been lame in the hock and I’ve always been managing that.” said Stuppos

“He had a couple of weeks off where I put him up the slip track, he came back on Sunday and trialled.”

“I think box one will be good for him because on Sunday morning he went 5.26 to the post, so hopefully he can hold out Nicole Price’s in box two (Velocity Tahnie). My main concern is Jack Trengove’s dog (Zipping Dione) because of how strong it looks. If that’s close to all of us then it’s going to be able to run us down.”

“The trial before I gave him (Master Wayne) that month off, he ran home in 12.98, which is alright. If he goes 12.98 then I will be ecstatic. When I trialled him on Sunday he ran home in 13.43, so he’s going to be a little underdone but his first three splits were flying, he went 5.26-14.74 and 17.64. If he goes around 13 dead or low 13s in the run home then he will break 31 and that will be competitive in that field.”

Cameron Forshaw will unveil a new chaser to his kennel, when Zipping Senorita lines up for her first South Australian start, 6 weeks after arriving in his care.

Zipping Senorita is a little sister to the promising Zipping Patch, who Cameron owns, so he will be hoping that she can emulate the success that Zipping Patch has already had.

She will line up in a grade 6 over the 530m trip, with the hope that she will be back over the longer distance shortly, having already run a few races over the 720m trip interstate.

She was nominated for a 730m race a month ago, but was scratched and this 520m race will start her preparation as she works her way back up to the distance.

“Obviously I bought (Zipping) Patch over and spoke with Marty (Hallinan) and he felt she would be suited over here and I had some interest in her so I said sure.” said Forshaw
 

“She's taken a long time to settle in, because we just moved so she was at the old house and moved to the new house so really she’s moved three times, so she’s just taken a while to settle in. She’s a quiet bitch, she’s basically the same as (Zipping) Nebraska, you don’t hear a peep from her.”

“She had a trial over the ‘600’ but that took a bit out of her so we decided to not take the risk with her.”

“I think she will struggle on Thursday, she’s just going to get too far back from them.”

Best Bet: Aston Arena (Race 12, Number 1)

Value Bet: Molly Irish (Race 8, Number 7)