Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Seven-year-old New Zealand-bred gelding Classic Choice has entered the Wanneroo stables of trainer Debbie Padberg after winning the $31,000 Media Guild Cup for Busselton trainer Barry Howlett and reinsman Mitch Miller at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
The win gave Howlett and members of his family the first leg of a feature-race double, which followed 33 minutes later with Our Maestoso’s victory in the Trotsynd Trotters Cup.
“I expected Classic Choice to be hard to beat, and I’ve now sold him to Debbie Padberg, who has bought three other pacers from me over the past 12 months, and she’s rapt in them,” said Howlett.
Mrs Padberg said that she was pleased to have purchased Name In Lights, Shoot Through, State Of Heaven and Hilarious Reign from the Howlett family, and was looking forward to racing Classic Choice.
“Barry is good on his prices, and his horses are beautifully bred and are all sound,” she said. “It’s difficult to get horses from the Eastern States, and I am keen to race pacers in the city, without having to go to the country because I’ve been there and done that.”
Classic Choice, an $11,000 purchase as a yearling in New Zealand, has been a splendid performer for the Howletts, having had 74 starts for them for 15 wins, 23 placings and stakes of $174,889. He is by American sire Sweet Lou and is the second foal out of Heart Of Jessie, who had 32 starts for five wins, eight placings and $30,442.
Among his successes was the Albany Cup in January 2022 when he beat his stablemate Sugar Street in track record time for a 2690m event, rating 1.58.
“I thought Classic Choice could have won at his previous start (when third behind Ideal Agent and Talks Up A Storm) but I messed up by mistakenly putting a lugging pole on him when he usually has a rein burr,” Howlett said.
“Coming into the straight he reacted to the pole and got unbalanced. He had the rein burr on him tonight and I expected him to go really good.”
Polemarker Solesseo Matuca was all the rage and was the $1.09 favourite from the prized No. 1 barrier, with Classic Choice a $27.90 chance from barrier five. Solesseo Matuca bowled along in front for Gary Hall Jnr, while Miller was happy to race in sixth position, one-out and two-back, before sending Classic Choice forward with a three-wide burst 520m from home.
Classic Choice sustained his finishing sprint and got up in the final couple of strides to beat $7 chance Alcopony, who overraced in the breeze and got his nose in front 10m from the post. Solesseo Matuca was a head away in third place, with the winner rating 1.54.5 over 2130m, with final quarters of 28.5sec. and 28.4sec.
Howlett was delighted with his double, but said he should have landed a treble, with $6 chance Sugar Street racing in the breeze and taking a narrow lead in the home straight before putting the brakes on and finishing second to Sugar Apple in the Ken Casellas Pace.