Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
An inclination to race greenly and reinsman Gary Hall’s vision severely impaired behind mud spattered goggles failed to prevent brilliant two-year-old Hez The Boss from running his rivals ragged and scoring an easy victory in the $250,000 Hoist Torque Pearl Classic over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Hall took full advantage of the No. 1 barrier and was able to give Hez The Boss, the $1.20 favourite, a casual task early with a slow lead time of 38.3sec. and modest opening quarters of 31.1sec. and 29.5sec. before the Poster Boy gelding sped over the final 400m sections in 27.8sec. and 28.5sec. and won by three lengths from the $2.75 second fancy Ideal Whisper, who fought on gamely after racing without cover all the way.
This gave Hall his seventh win in the Pearl Classic, and it was Banjup trainer Colin Brown’s second win in the classic after driving Isaiah Artois for trainer David Thompson in 2014.
“Hez the Boss had been working brilliantly leading up to tonight’s race,” said Brown. “He does only what he has to in his races. He has pulled up super, and now I’ll be preparing him for the $215,000 Westbred Classic for colts and geldings on September 4 and the $150,000 Golden Slipper three weeks after that race.”
Hez The Boss, a $100,000 yearling who is raced by Liam O’Connor and Trevor Lindsay, has already earned $245,399 from six wins and a second placing from seven starts.
Unfortunately, Friday night’s classic was marred by a spectacular mishap 320m from home when $126 outsider Ultimate Shot contacted the sulky of $91 chance Bonebuster, with that gelding’s driver Mitch Miller being catapulted high into the air before landing heavily on the track.
Kyle Syminton, the driver of Ultimate Shot, was also dislodged from his sulky. He fell to the track but was able to retain his hold of the reins and prevent the gelding from galloping away.
Symington suffered from general soreness, mainly in the lower back region, while Miller was knocked unconscious and suffered from concussion as well as injuries to his left arm.
Hez The Boss gave Hall the first leg of a driving treble which he completed with wins with Luvbite in the HTA Rent A Gen Handicap and Scooter B in the HTA Setting New Standards In Hoisting Pace.
Hall was driving the Michael Young-trained Luvbite for the first time when the Victorian-bred seven-year-old was the sole backmarker off 40m in the 2503m stand.
Luvbite, the $3.10 favourite, was eighth at the bell with frontmarker Dawson ($4) bowling along in the lead, and Luvbite’s stablemate and last-start winner Stormy Vista ($5.50) racing strongly in the breeze.
Emily Suvaljko sent Stormy Vista to the front on the home turn, with Luvbite moving into fourth place and then finishing determinedly to get up and win in the final stride after the final quarters were run in 27.9ec. and 28.3sec.
Luvbite has been racing in superb form, and his 15 WA starts have produced seven wins and two placings, taking his career record to 162 starts for 20 wins, 59 placings and stakes of $314,459.
Four-year-old Scooter B, trained by Gary Hall Snr, was the $1.10 favourite from the No. 6 barrier, and he was not extended in dashing to the front after 450m, setting the pace and winning easily from his stablemate Raklou ($19) to improve his record to eleven starts for five wins, four placings and $59,873.
This gave Hall Snr the second leg of a double, following the win of $9 chance Alta Tribute, who was rated perfectly in the breeze by Maddison Brown before getting to the front with 475m to travel and going on to win by a neck from stablemate Sweet Pins ($6). Alta Tribute rated a smart 1.54.9 over 2130m and this boosted his earnings to $220,126 from 11 wins and ten placings from 38 starts.