Fanta Bale flawless in Gold Cup; Super Stayers remains unclear
ROB Britton says he will be waiting until over the weekend to decide whether his champion bitch Fanta Bale will head back to Albion Park to contest next week's Listed Super Stayers (710m) at Albion Park.
The daughter of David Bale and Ucme Typhoon took the Sunshine State by storm on Thursday night, scoring a brilliant all-the-way victory in the Group 1 Gold Cup.
Beginning flawlessly from box seven, nothing else was given a chance as Fanta Bale rocketed clear to score by six and a half lengths over Big Easy Red (box eight) and Cyndie's Magic (box three) in 41.78.
The black bitch has now won 25 of her 39 starts including five group 1 triumphs – the Gold Cup, the Australian Cup, the Rookie Rebel, the Hume Cup and the Sandown Cup – with prize money earnings now in excess of $797,000.
Britton was full of praise for his bonny bitch following the run.
“She is just a great little race dog,” Britton told Australian Racing Greyhound.
“I was reasonably confident she could get the job done if she got a clear run, but I was a bit worried about the draw because I knew she'd have to begin well to get across.
“When she jumped so well I knew from that point onwards that she would be pretty hard to beat.
“This is her time in the sun and often that's how staying goes – you have one dog which dominates – so we are hoping it lasts a bit longer.”
The victory saw Fanta Bale receive an invitation to next Thursday's Listed Super Stayers over the same track and trip. The race is worth $25,000 and is comprised of a four dog invitation-only field.
Fanta Bale's competitors will be superstar stayer Burn One Down, local heroine Cyndie's Magic and talented NSW racer Ebby Ripper.
However, Britton says Fanta Bale is no certainty to line up and says he will wait to see how she recovers from the run after returning home to her Victorian kennel on Friday.
“It's very hard to do it at both ends – front running stayers seem to do it a lot harder than those who drop out and run home in the last 200m,” he said.
“Because of that you have got to be careful not to over race them – I don't want to give her one too many runs and do her any harm.
“Three weeks in a row is a big ask for a dog like her, so I am going to make a final decision on Sunday once I make sure she is 100 per cent.”
If Fanta Bale does not start, Big Easy Red, which finished second in the Gold Cup on Thursday night, will take her place.