Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Smart five-year-old Whataretheodds was beaten for early speed from the No. 1 barrier before enjoying an ideal passage in the one-out, one-back position and finishing determinedly to be a well-beaten second to Ventura over 1730m last Friday week.
It was a solid effort at his first outing for three months, and his trainer Ryan Bell declared: “I was rapt with the way he went. He was massive and I think it was the best he has gone.
“It was the quickest he has ever gone, when he was beaten fair and square by a better horse (Ventura) on the night. He pulled up well and has improved. It will be hard against Vegas Strip (barrier one), but I think Kyle (Symington) has got to come out and have a look for the lead and see what happens.
“Whataretheodds will actually begin better from barrier four than he would from the No. 1 barrier. He has done it his whole career. From barrier one he just can’t compose himself.”
Vegas Strip, to be driven by Deni Roberts for trainers Greg and Skye Bond, is sure to start a short-priced favourite. He has won at eight of his 19 starts and gets a great chance to end a losing sequence of eight.
He is a smart frontrunner who set the pace before fading to fifth behind stablemate Christopher Dance in the 2536m WA Derby two starts ago, and then had little luck when he was restrained from out wide at barrier eight when seventh behind High Price over 2130m last Friday night. He was last in the middle stages and then was forced to cover a lot of extra ground.
Golden Lode, a stablemate of Vegas Strip, and The Cody Wallrodt-trained The Beaudster are racing keenly and should be prominent.
Dylan Egerton-Green had to deliberate at length before deciding to drive Lucky Copy ahead of Shoobees Double in the Westral Quality Since 1973 Pace for two-year-old fillies.
He has driven each filly to impressive last-start victories, and a more favourable barrier at No. 3 swayed Egerton-Green’s judgment in that filly’s favour ahead of Shoobees Double, who will begin out wide at barrier eight.
“They both went well in their recent wins,” said Egerton-Green.
Lucky Copy, trained by Aiden De Campo, resumed after a four-month absence when she began from barrier three in a 2190m event at Northam last Saturday night. She mustered plenty of pace and sped to the front after 80m before zipping over the final 400m sections in 28.7sec. and 28.6sec. and winning by two and a half lengths from The First Cut, rating 2.1.7.
Shoobees Double rated 2.2.3 when she won from the pacemaker Chekker over 2100m at Bunbury last Saturday week. Shoobees Double, prepared by Simone Strachan, began from barrier three and after an unsuccessful challenge for the early lead she sat behind Chekker and finished solidly along the sprint lane to win by just over a half-length.