Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
The No. 1 barrier at Gloucester Park is eagerly sought after by owners, trainers and drivers, and it produces a far greater percentage of winners than any other barrier in mobile events at this 804m course.
Star trainer-reinsman Aiden De Campo is happy, but not overjoyed, that his in-form four-year-old Major Disco has drawn the prized No. 1 barrier in the $50,000 John Higgins Memorial over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
He is hoping that Major Disco will buck the odds by winning the 32nd running of this feature event which has produced only four winners from the No. 1 barrier, the mighty Move Over (2011), In The Perfect Storm (2014), Rub Of The Green (2016) and See Ya Write (2021).
De Campo well remembers the 2024 Higgins Memorial when he set the pace from barrier four with Sorridere, who won from Whataretheodds, who began from the inside barrier and was the $1.70 favourite.
“Major Disco probably is not ideally suited to leading, but it is a good position to be in at Gloucester Park,” said De Campo, who is sure to make good use of the gelding’s good gate speed in a bid to set the pace.
In a qualifying heat at Bunbury’s Donaldson Park on July 11 Major Disco began from the No. 3 barrier and raced three wide for the first 500m before working in the breeze and finishing second to American Blaze after the final 400m sections were run in 28sec. and 28.3sec.
American Blaze impressed greatly with that victory, at his first appearance after a six-month absence when having his first start for trainer-reinsman Michael Munro. He began from the No. 4 barrier on the back line and quickly moved to the breeze before surging to the front after 650m and winning comfortably.
The four-year-old was trained and driven by De Campo at his previous outing, over 2185m at Pinjarra, when he also started from barrier four on the back line and enjoyed an ideal passage in the one-out and one-back position before winning narrowly from Ronald Scott. That was American Blaze’s first start for two months and only his second appearance in Australia after racing eleven times in New Zealand for two wins and two placings.
After his second to American Blaze at Bunbury Major Disco lined up at barrier eight in a 2130m event at Gloucester Park last Friday week when he began from out wide at barrier eight and burst to the front after 650m and fought on gamely to win from Lou Lamour and Diamond World.
Four-year-olds have dominated the Higgins Memorial in recent years, with the past five winners being that age, See Ya Write, Mr Fantastic, Peter Petrify, Sorridere and Major Jay (who dead-heated with nine-year-old Onesmartfella last year).
The main dangers to Major Disco and American Blaze appear likely to be Curadh and Leaveamessage, with Curadh racing keenly for trainer-reinsman Dylan Egerton-Green.
Curadh, who will begin from the outside of the back line, had a tough run in the breeze when fifth behind Major Disco last Friday week. That followed an all-the-way Northam win and three placings at his three previous outings.
Egerton-Green prepared $16.40 chance Tyler Brett when Colin Brown drove the four-year-old to victory in the 2018 Higgins Memorial.
Gary Hall Jnr will be seeking his sixth win in the Higgins when he drives the Nathan Turvey-trained Leaveamessage from barrier No. 5. The four-year-old led and won over 2185m at Pinjarra two starts ago and then finished second to Overly Excited in a Higgins heat over 2242m at Narrogin on Tuesday of last week.
Hall has won the Higgins with Partywiththedevil (2010), In The Perfect Storm (2014), Rub Of The Green (2016), Mr Fantastic (2022) and Major Jay (who dead-heated with Onesmartfella last year).