By David Nagel
The stage is set for the running of “the world’s greatest greyhound race” after the box draw for Friday night’s $500,000 to-the-winner Group-1 TAB Melbourne Cup Final (515m) took place at the Eureka Tower on Sunday.
The race-favourite and track-record holder at Sandown Park – Aston Rupee – has drawn box four for the classic, opening up a plethora of scenarios for the biggest race on the Australian greyhound racing calendar.
Trained by Glenn Rounds, Aston Rupee – a recent winner of the Group-1 Topgun – is Australia’s number one sprinter.
The Melbourne Cup looks set to be an absorbing contest, with the fastest beginner in the field – Aussie Secret – drawing the coveted red-rug in box-one.
Aussie Secret has a habit of pinging from the boxes and drifting wide, meaning there could be some serious carnage as eight of the fastest dogs in the country run down the straight for the first time.
Last Friday night’s eight heats at Sandown Park provided world-class racing!
Unquestionably, the ‘world-beaters’ were Lala Kiwi (Heat 8), Lakeview Walter (Heat 7) and Aston Rupee (Heat 4).
Lala Kiwi ($3.50), prepared by Victoria’s leading trainer Andrea Dailly, set the time standard with a slick 29.24sec victory.
The G3 Cranbourne Classic winner notched her 16th win from 37 starts. She was also a finalist in the G1 Topgun and G2 Cranbourne Cup.
Trained by Monique Whelan, Lakeview Walter ($3.70) – who has battled wrist issues – returned to his brilliant best in 29.26sec.
Winner of the G1 Silver Chief, G3 Silver Bullet and G3 The Ambrosoli, Lakeview Walter registered his 11th win from 29 starts. He was also a finalist in the G1 Temlee and G1 Harrison-Dawson.
It’s said, “Uneasy is the head that wears the crown” and there were some anxious moments for trainer Glenn Rounds with Australia’s No. 1 sprinter Aston Rupee ($1.50fav).
But the superstar now gets his chance to join former champ Bombastic Shiraz as the only greyhound to win the ‘triple crown’ (Shootout, Topgun and Melbourne Cup) after a spellbinding 29.47sec win.
As they turned for home, race caller Daniel Hibberd came into his own shouting: “Aston Rupee’s coming, he’s coming, he’ll get up and win”.
Holder of Sandown Park’s 515m track record (28.79sec), Aston Rupee recorded his 19th win from 32 starts. It was his eighth win from his past nine starts and he’s six from six exiting box three.
He’s also won the G3 Bill Collins Speed Star (515m) and G3 Speed Star (525m) and was a G1 Adelaide Cup finalist and runner-up in the G3 Launching Pad.
You couldn’t have scripted a better start to the series when Koblenz ($1.30F) and Jepara ($11.30) dead-heated in Heat 1.
Koblenz, trained by David Geall, and Jepara, prepared by Angela Langton, couldn’t be separated in 29.43sec.
Dubbed “Mr Reliable”, G2 Cranbourne Cup winner Koblenz notched his eighth win from his past nine starts. And he’s now eight from 10 exiting box two.
Jepara was finalist in the G1 Silver Chief and Victorian National Sprint Championship.
Other heat winners were Kinson Bale (29.47sec), Aussie Secret (29.57sec) Tiberia Bale (29.64) and Typhoon Sammy (29.65sec), with the latter demoted to first reserve as a result of the dead-heat.
TAB MELBOURNE CUP FIELD
Friday 26 November, 2021
Box Runner Odds
1 Aussie Secret $8
2 Jepara $15
3 Koblenz $3
4 Aston Rupee $2.50
5 Lala Kiwi $10
6 Lakeview Walter $10
7 Tiberia Bale $71
8 Kinson Bale $15
Reserves
9 Typhoon Sammy $10
10 Jax Bale $15
