Ken Casellas | Photo: Hamilton Content Creators
Hobby trainer Chris Phatouros has always been a devotee of standing-start racing and he was smiling happily when Rebel With A Grin broke through for an overdue victory at Gloucester Park on Friday night to give him his first city success for four and a half years.
Rebel With A Grin, a $11.30 chance off the 10m mark in the 2503m The Running Camel/Team Bond Handicap, was driven skillfully by Kyle Symington, who raced the New Zealand-bred six-year-old in third place on the pegs while Yankee Lincoln ($20) was setting a solid pace.
Yankee Lincoln began to wilt in the final circuit, and Shannon Suvaljko sent $6 chance Deeorse to the front 450m from home. Rebel With A Grin then set sail after Deeorse and he surged to the front in the final 50m before winning by a metre from the fast-finishing Regal Scribe ($13).
This ended a losing sequence of 28 for Rebel With A Grin, whose previous success was in August 2020 when he won the 3309m Marathon Handicap by a nose from Forgotten Highway. The victory also gave Phatouros his first Gloucester Park win since Ideal Investment was successful over 1730m on April 13, 2018. It was his 26TH training success.
Rebel With A Grin is owned by Phatouros and his wife Joanne Scotney, who bought the Smiling Shard gelding 14 months ago.
“Rebel With A Grin was in a paddock with a quarter crack in his nearside fore hoof, and I waited until that grew out before preparing him for racing,” said the 55-year-old Phatouros.
Rebel With A Grin, a winner of three races in New Zealand, was having his tenth start for his new owners on Friday night, with Phatouros being the fifth trainer of the gelding in WA. Rebel With A Grin now has had 74 starts for 12 wins, 18 placings and $106,494.
He is out of the Elsu mare Highview Chasue, who managed four wins in minor events from 17 starts but is a half-sister to former outstanding pacer Highview Tommy, who earned $990,015 from 17 wins and 27 placings from 104 starts.
Phatouros also trains Acuto, an excellent standing-start performer who has won at Pinjarra and Northam. “Acuto has come close a few times in the city, especially in the BOTRA Cup in July when he finished a half-head second to Twobob Cracker,” said Phatouros.
“Rebel With A Grin is also quick out of the mobile and he could develop into a candidate for the Nights Of Thunder at Christmas.”
Phatouros, who has always had a love of horses, has fond memories of helping out in various stables as a youngster, and learning about the care of harness horses from champion trainer-reinsman Phil Coulson.
“I have always liked the stands, right from many years ago when I was a youngster,” he said. “I had a lot of success with a grey pacer Sunday Silence, who won three stands at Gloucester Park in 1994.”