Ken Casellas | Photo: Pacepix
Cardup trainer Craig Abercromby had no great expectations when he started veteran pacers Blue Blazer and Walsh in the 2130m Barbagallo Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night — and he was stunned when he landed the quinella with Blue Blazer, the $3.40 favourite, winning from Walsh, the $101 rank outsider of the field.
Blue Blazer, an eight-year-old with a losing sequence of 22, looked a good chance in modest company and with the distinct advantage of the prized No. 1 barrier.
But the plan was for Blue Blazer to take a sit because he had always proved to be vulnerable when leading.
“We didn’t think he would be able to lead and win,” said Abercromby. “The plans were to hand up. But Junior (Gary Hall Jnr) said that he felt good, and he decided to let him slide. And that’s what he did.
“In previous starts when he has led, he hasn’t been able to sustain the effort for the whole journey. So, I was really surprised that he led and was able to win tonight. And it really amazed me with Walsh running second.”
Seven-year-old Walsh went into the race with little prospect of being prominent from out wide at barrier eight and with unplaced efforts at his 12 previous starts. Callan Suvaljko drove him patiently, four back on the pegs in seventh position, before gaining an inside passage in the final circuit to get up and snatch second place.
The quinella returned a handsome dividend of $199.40 and the trifecta dividend (with Brookies Jet in third place) was a healthy $2842.60, and the first four dividend (with Name In Lights in fourth place) was $6116.
For Hall it was only his third drive behind Blue Blazer — following a seventh in November 2021 and an eighth in April 2022. The win completed a treble for Hall, who had been successful earlier in the night with Master Yossi and Prince Of Pleasure.
Hall is one of 24 drivers to have handled Blue Blazer during his 132-start career of 16 wins, 18 seconds, 12 thirds and stakes of $156,825.