Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
WA-bred pacer Eldaytona caused a surprise when, at his first outing for seven weeks, he finished full of running to win the $21,000 TABtouch Scan My Bet Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
His victory for part-owner and trainer-reinsman Lindsay Harper ended a losing sequence of eleven and a nine-month drought.
He was a $26.70 chance from the No. 3 barrier when he began speedily and was quickly slotted in by Harper behind the pacemaker and $10 chance Dominus Factum, with the polemarker and $3.30 second fancy Faster Than Dad beaten for early pace and settling down in fifth position on the pegs.
Jett Star, the $3 favourite from barrier No. 7, raced three wide for the first 500m before getting to the breeze. Jett Star then forged to the front with 270m to travel before being swamped by the fast-finishing Eldaytona 100m from the post.
Eldaytona, a six-year-old by Somebeachsomewhere, was unfancied after he had finished last, 81m behind the winner Regal Cheval over 2130m seven weeks before Friday night’s race.
Harper explained that it was discovered that after that failure Eldaytona had been affected by a virus. “And I thought he would be underdone and not fit enough tonight, but it certainly didn’t appear that way,” he said.
“I thought that if Eldaytona had led he would be an each-way chance. But when Dominus Factum crossed me at the start, I thought it would be much harder.
“In the back straight Eldaytona was bolting when he was following Jett Star.”
Eldaytona now has raced 65 times for 15 wins and 24 placings for stakes of $212,557.