Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Mitch Miller has returned to WA, refreshed after a Christmas holiday in England, and with bright prospects of guiding Soho Dow Jones to victory in the $25,000 APG Pace over 2536m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Soho Dow Jones, trained by Kim Prentice, has drawn perfectly at barrier No. 1 and Miller will be keen to use the big gelding’s frontrunning ability in the small field of seven.
Miller, who drove 75 winners in 2023, has handled Soho Dow Jones in 25 of his 46 starts for six wins and seven placings.
Soho Dow Jones had a tough run in the breeze when a solid third behind Cheddar Is Better and Robshaw in a 2116m stand at Pinjarra on Wednesday of last week when he began from the 20m mark.
Two starts before that, Soho Dow Jones finished third behind Tricky Miki and Wonderful To Fly in the Group 1 Golden Nugget over 2536m, after trailing the pacemaking Tricky Miki all the way.
Miller has three other drives on Friday night, with pacers he will be handling for the first time in a race. He will drive the speedy mare Queeninthecorner (race three), Flying Rumour (race five) and Machlani (race six).
Queeninthecorner, trained by Kevin Charles, will start from out wide at barrier No. 8. She began speedily from barrier four and led for the first 250m in the Coulson Pace for mares last Friday night before taking the trail behind the eventual winner Sovrana. Queeninthecorner was held up for a clear run until late and finished in fifth place.
At her previous appearance, Queeninthecorner burst straight to the front from barrier six and went on to win comfortably from Fireball Friday and Patrikiar over 2130m.
This week Queeninthecorner faces a stern test, with noted frontrunner Lamandier perfectly drawn at barrier one and the expected pacemaker in a race in which his toughest rival is likely to be five-year-old mare Taking The Miki.
Taking The Miki, to be driven by Chris Voak for trainer Jemma Hayman, maintained her splendid form last Friday night when she settled down in seventh position and started a three-wide move 1050m from home before challenging the pacemaker All Is Well in the final circuit and then wilting late and finishing a fighting second to that pacer, beaten by three lengths.
Flying Rumour is racing keenly for trainer Mike Reed and Miller should have the gelding handily placed throughout after starting from the inside of the back line.
Eight-year-old Machlani, trained by Giles Inwood and a winner at eleven of his 118 starts, faces a tough assignment from the No. 8 barrier in the 1730m Cowden Insurance Pace. He has been out of the winning list for 17 months.