Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Hall of Fame trainer Gary Hall Snr stole the limelight at Gloucester Park on Friday night when his stablemates, Alta Tribute, Youre So Fine and Sweet Pins, all at double-figure odds, finished one, two and three in the $31,000 ARG Rotary Club of Fremantle Free-For-All.
The trifecta dividend was a handsome $3624.60. And for good measure, Gary Hall Jnr drove the fourth placegetter, Mighty Ronaldo for trainer Justin Prentice, with the first four dividend $11,803.70.
A clever drive by Maddison Brown paved the way for $17.60 chance Alta Tribute’s victory in the event in which Hotly Pursued dominated betting and was a hot $1.60 favourite.
Hotly Pursued, from barrier four, was expected to burst straight to the front. Kylah Madden got Hotly Pursued away to a flying start and the six-year-old led by a length in the early stages but was unable to cross when Hale Saint Louie ($13) from the No. 1 barrier, and $81 outsider Chivalry booted up on his inside.
The lead time was a scorching 34.9sec. and the Hotly Pursued finally got to the front after 550m. This saw Alta Tribute four back on the pegs in fourth position after beginning from the inside of the back line.
The early speed saw the field open up, and Brown then made the bold decision to vacate the pegs run and move to the breeze about 580m after the start. Fortuitously, Alta Tribute gained the favourable one-out, one-back spot when the aggressive Aiden De Campo brought Youre So Fine ($12) from the rear with a fast burst to move to the breeze after a lap had been completed.
Madden was able to get Hotly Pursued to relax and run the opening quarters of the final mile in 31.1sec. and 30.2sec. The third 400m section went by in a quick 28.2sec. and the early hectic pace began to take its toll on Hotly Pursued, and De Campo dashed Youre So Fine to the front with about 220m ton travel.
Brown switched Alta Tribute three wide approaching the home turn, and the gelding sprinted fast to hit the front 45m from the post and go on and win by almost a length from Youre So Fine, with $14 chance Sweet Pins, driven by Stuart McDonald, coming from eighth at the bell with a strong five-wide burst to finish third, with the final 400m being run in 27.8sec.
Alta Tribute has recovered from a bow tendon a couple of years ago and has now earned $202,326 from ten wins and ten placings from 37 starts. He will be set for the $50,000 Group 3 August Cup over 2536m on August 21.