A big weekend of trots action kicked off at Tabcorp Park Melton on Friday with a special win for Camperdown trainer Tony Chisholm and Jason Lee.

Details below, plus all the action from the Shepparton and Hamilton Cup meetings as well as a look interstate as we wrap up the action in the Catch-Up.

 

FRIDAY

TABCORP PARK MELTON

  • Camperdown Trainer Tony Chisholm combined with close mate and gun driver Jason Lee for a memorable Tabcorp Park Melton win on Friday night.

Lee guided Chisholm’s eight-year-old gelding Big Bang Leonard (Art Major-Finest) to a narrow win at massive odds in the M0 Del-Re Hunter Cup Feb 2 Pace over 2240m.

“Pretty special, that win,” Lee said afterwards.

“He’s had things pretty tough Tone, not just the last couple of years but his whole life, and he’s been fighting on. He said if he won a race in town he could die a happy man, so good on you Tone, that one’s special.”

Chisholm has been battling illness in recent years.

Lee went on. “You think life’s hard sometimes … put yourself in Tony’s shoes and you realise it’s not so bad. For him to still get out of bed every day and work like he does and put the effort into these horses like he does, it’s just great to get a bit of reward.

“The whole family at home are right behind Tony and give him a hand whenever he needs it, and he does the same with us, so this is very special.”

Chisholm has trained 28 winners since his first runner in season 2011-12 and this was his first metropolitan success.

Big Bang Leonard was the rank outsider of the field at $77.40 and fought off Million Dollar Gem and Goonly at the finish in 1:57.4.

HEAR FROM JASON LEE AND ALL THE WINNING DRIVERS IN THIS WEEK'S ALL CLEAR:

  • Lance Justice remains confident Rishi (Bettors Delight-Reklaw) can make top grade after the five-year-old gelding’s third win in the past month.

Rishi was initially headed off on Friday night by the nimble Bernie Winkle but Justice marched his pacer to the front once crossed and paced a controlled mid-section before sprinting home for a 3.2m win in 1:54.1 for the 1720m trip.

“He’s a pretty strong horse and I think he could go the top grade, but he needs to get more seasoned,” Justice said.

Rishi has won 11 races from 29 starts and will head towards the country cups circuit.

  • Chris Alford’s dominance of the Garrards State Drivers Premiership was enhanced across the weekend with four winners at Hamilton on Sunday, a winner at Shepparton on Saturday night and a double at Tabcorp Park Melton on Friday night.

Both his Friday night victors came aboard Emma Stewart-trained runners; Liftntorque (Shadow Play-Georgia Cracker) taking out the DNR Logistics Pace Final to kick off the card and smart four-year-old Rocknroll Ronnie (Always A Virgin-Influential) capturing the TAB Multiplier Pace Final to make it a race to race double.

Rocknroll Ronnie has won three of his four starts.

  • Immediately after Stewart/Alford won races one and two at HQ, another formidable partnership doubled up with Keith Cotchin and Greg Sugars taking events three and four.

Rocknroll Noah (Rocknroll Hanover-Ark De Ville) took out the Hyland Harness Colours Pace in 1:59.1 to break his M0, while classy youngster Betternbetter (Betterthancheddar-Cee Cee Sheffield) scored a terrific win in the Pridmore Electrics 3YO Pace Final.

Betternbetter has six wins from seven starts and is a $21 shot for the Victoria Derby with TAB.com.au.

“The horse is, as Dan (Mielicki) just said, getting better and better,” Sugars said.

“He’s a very reluctant track worker, so Keith probably can’t put the work in he’d like. The good part about that is when they go to the races they’re going to lift and there’s going to be improvement in them.”

Betternbetter pocketed connections a cool $25k by winning last season’s Group 2 Empire Stallions Vicbred Platinum Home Grown Classic (2YO C&G) Final.

 

LEETON

  • Former Victorian-trained pacer Vasari (Art Major-Thebestamancanget) romped home at Leeton on Friday night to deliver trainer Sonya Smith her first winner since relocating to New South Wales from Victoria.

Vasari had 16m on runner-up Im Not Crazy in the NH3 Refrigeration Pace.

  • Shepparton’s Laura Crossland prepared The Tiger Army (Sportswriter-Scottish Glamour) to win the first heat of the Southern Central Engineering Breeders Plate at Leeton.

Crossland also drove the unbeaten colt, who rated 2:01.0 for the 1785m trip.

Realnspectacular (Betterthancheddar-Lucknow Lady) implanted herself as a serious filly to follow with a 2.4m win in the second of the Breeders Plate heats for trainer Terry Coelli.

The filly rated 2:01.3 to win the contest, picking up the money courtesy of a clever Blake Jones drive.

Three-back the pegs in the run, Jones eventually eased Realnspectacular to the outside, yada, yada, yada the rest was history as she charged to the post.

 

GLOUCESTER PARK

  • My Field Marshal (Art Major-Foreal) saw off all challengers to win the Group 1 Retravision Fremantle Pacing Cup on Friday night.

Driven by Anthony Butt for trainer Tim Butt, the seven-year-old Australasian mile rate record holder led from gate two and had 1.2m on runner-up Galactic Star at the finish of the 2536m race, rating 1:55.6. 

 

SATURDAY

SHEPPARTON

  • Gavin Lang drew high praise from all and sundry following his drive aboard Im Pats Delight to land the Neatline Homes Shepparton Gold Cup for trainer Cran Dalgety.

Read more here.

The victory makes it four Shepparton Cup wins for Lang, who first won the race aboard Unique Icon back in 2002, then was victorious with Tanabi Bromac in 2010 and Our White Knight in 2013.

  • Star trotting mare Red Hot Tooth Yankee Paco-Karaka Tooth) won her second straight George Gath (Group 3) on Saturday night, sprinting sharply to beat Kyvalley Blur and Big Jack Hammer in 1:59.8 for the 2190m trip.

Red Hot Tooth is trained by Kari Males and was driven by Zac Phillips.

  • Rising star three-year-old Max Delight (Bettors Delight-Lady Euthenia) looks a serious pacer in the making after another big win on Saturday night.

The David Aiken trained and driven colt had defeated highly rated Lochinvar Art previously and coasted home here by over 20m in 1:58.5.

  • Reinsman Noel Tyndall is going at a 50 per cent strike rate in the sulky this season.

Tyndall, 63, has only had six drives but has won three of them and he would have enjoyed winning the last on Shepp Cup night with his five-year-old Crocodile Kid (Armbro Operative-Crocodile Tears).

That’s 32 winners for Tyndall’s career as a driver (from 311 drives).

 

MENANGLE

  • The outright Del-Re National A.G. Hunter Cup favourite, Tiger Tara (Bettors Delight-Tara Gold), tuned up for another Victorian campaign with a 1:53.8 win at Menangle on Saturday night.

Last month’s TAB ID18 champion put his opposition away in the Miracle Mile Restaurant January Specials Pace, 9.9m ahead of Egodan at the wire.

Kevin Pizzuto’s ability to have a horse ready for its grand final will strike fear into the hearts of enemies at the TAB Summer of Glory and it’ll be great to see his stable star roaring here again with Todd McCarthy aboard.

  • Reinsman Leigh Sutton combined with wife Tiarn, the trainer, to win the C91.3FM Pace at Menangle with eight-year-old Team Of Starzzz (Four Starzzz Shark-Team Spirit).

Team Of Starzzz has now won two in a row for the Sutton partnership, and punters who have followed are doing well. The gelding has paid $34 and $14 for the wins.

 

GLOBE DERBY

  • Greg Scholefield continues to maintain a sensational strike rate, compiling a double at Globe Derby on Saturday night from just two runners.

Amazingly Scholefield, who only has three horses in his stable, has won nine races from 15 starts this season.

A fortnight ago Scholefield took all three of his team to Victor Harbour where he walked away with a winning treble.

Kingofthestars stayed home this weekend, but Scholefield’s other two horses, siblings Emain Macha (Safari-Machabella) and Labella Rock (Pet Rock-Machabella) notched wins.

Emain Macha actually took out the night’s feature event, the Lonsdale Sand and Metal Italian Cup, scoring by 9.3m over Our Jericho.

Wayne Hill drove both winners.

 

TEMORA

  • Blackbird Power (Mach Three-Power Player) won the BFB & New Earthmoving Temora Pacers Cup on Saturday night for trainer Gavin Kelly and driver Jimmy Brown.

The six-year-old upstaged the favourite, Mackeral, by a short half-head, with Jodan in third.

 

SUNDAY

HAMILTON

  • Wardan Express defied any notion he wouldn’t run the 2660m out on Sunday at Hamilton, producing a new track record for the journey in winning the Matthews Petroleum Hamilton Pacing Cup.

The Matthew Craven trained and driven five-year-old took up the front running early and held it thereafter for a 4.9m win over Tough Call in 1:55.2.

Race favourite Stroke Of Luck got back in the run and finished on strongly for third beaten 7m by the winner, while Lookofalegend had to retire from the event with a flat tyre.

  • Alderbeck (Pegasus Spur-J D Pat) was rated to perfection by Alford to win Sunday’s Alexandra House Hamilton Trotters Cup for trainer Brent Lilley.

The six-year-mare, who came to Australia to contest the TAB ID18 series but failed to qualify for the final, has two wins and a second for Lilley since joining his team.

Alderbeck rated 2:04.3 for the 2660m standing start trot.

  • Alford (four winners), Stewart (three winners) and Craven (two winners) were the dominant forces at Hamilton.

Alford won the opening race in style aboard Stewart-trained Nostra Ideal (American Ideal-Indigenous) in a blisteringly quick 1:52.2 – narrowly outside the 1:52.0 track record held by My Harmony Blue.

The runner-up, Just Speed for Anton Golino, looks a potential top-line three-year-old also but remained a maiden with a powerful second at start number two after burning the candle at both ends from the pole. Follow.

Alford bookended the program with Trinity Dreaming (Somebeachsomewhere-Aluring) taking out the Ace Radio 3HA / Mixx FM Vicbred Platinum Mares Sprint Championship (7th heat).

Trinity Dreaming’s dam, Aluring, has a cracking record in the breeding barn with all seven of her progeny winning multiple races, including 18-time winner Our Femme Fatale.

 

GOULBURN

  • Raukapuka Ruler (Bettors Delight-Miss Elsie) took out Sunday’s Goulburn Soldiers Club Walla Walla Stakes, giving Team Butt another weekend feature race success.

The five-year-old gelding finished a head clear of Spare Me Days in a rate of 2:02.1 for the 2240m trip.