Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Luck frequently plays an important role in deciding sporting contests, and ace Coolup trainer-reinsman Aiden De Campo made the most of the unexpected opportunity to compete in the $125,000 APG WA Sales Classic for two-year-old colts and geldings at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Ten days earlier De Campo was left lamenting when The Bettor Side was hopelessly blocked for a clear run in a qualifying heat when he appeared to be a certainty beaten into fourth place behind Louie Vee, and then was named as second emergency for the rich final.
Ill luck then forced the connections of Hold The Ammo and When In Vegas, the third and fourth fastest qualifiers, to withdraw their pacers when they were not fully fit to contest the big event.
This enabled The Bettor Side to get a start and the gelding drew No. 4 in the 1730m final, much to the delight of the five part-owners.
The Bettor Side was the $6.40 fourth favourite, and De Campo drove skilfully to win by a half-neck from the $4.80 second fancy Louie Vee, who put up an outstanding performance after being trapped three wide early and then being restrained to the rear. Louie Vee was still last in the field of ten 500m from home before he unwound a tremendous finishing burst, out four wide, to just fail to overhaul The Bettor Side.
Heat winner Mysta Moon Walker, trained by Robbie Williams and a stablemate of Louie Vee, was the $2.10 favourite from the No. 2 barrier, and Chris Voak sent the gelding straight to the lead.
The Bettor Side began speedily, and De Campo made a split-second decision to ease the gelding across to the pegs to take the trail behind the leader, leaving Control The Room ($5.50) in the breeze.
“Later, the horse in the one-out, one-back position (Wicked Hustler) couldn’t keep up and I was able to get The Bettor Side off the pegs and into the clear (550m out),” said De Campo.
Kyle Symington sent Control The Room to the front 270m from home before The Bettor Side sustained a spirited burst which carried him to the front 70m from the post. The Bettor Side then held on to defeat Louie Vee.
Regarding his tactics, De Campo said: “I decided to run the gate to see what happened. I wanted to make sure that the leader (Mysta Moon Walker) didn’t hand up to Louie Vee. And then I was happy to take the trail, and I wasn’t worried about being hemmed in again. You can’t worry about the past.
“The Bettor Side doesn’t like being out in front. He can pull up to a walk in front, and when he hit the front, I was a bit worried, but luckily when a horse came, he picked up the bit and got going.”
De Campo, who trained and drove the winner of this event with Floewriter in 2021, said he picked out The Bettor Side at the 2023 APG Perth yearling sale and bought him for $70,000 before syndicating him to five stable clients.
The Bettor Side now has raced three times for a win and two fourths for earnings of $75,526. He is by American stallion Downbytheseaside and is the second foal out of the Bettors Delight mare Bettor Boa, who raced 53 times between 2015 and 2018 for ten wins, 15 placings and $119,061.
“I remember racing against Bettor Boa, and she was a good big type of mare,” said De Campo.” Bettor Boa’s first foal is Halle Hunter, who raced three times as a three-year-old filly for trainer Colin Brown for three wins last December. One of Bettor Boa’s most memorable performances was her second to Dodolicious in the WA Oaks in May 2016.
De Campo intends sending The Bettor Side for a spell before preparing him for the Pearl Classic and other feature events for two-year-olds later in the year.