Elite Machine and Electrified hot favourites to win through to WA Winter Cup final
Two heats of the 2023 Listed Winter Cup at Cannington over 520m are the feature greyhound races on Saturday in Australia, with all the focus predominantly in Queensland for the Queensland Winter Carnival.
The Winter Cup is for the best greyhounds nominated based on their West Australian (WA) city sprint grade and has attracted just 16 greyhounds.
With only two heats to be run, the results from Cannington on Saturday night should be a reliable indicator for next week's $19,950 to-the-winner final, as the first four dogs across the finish line will all advance to the final.
Greyhound betting sites have installed the Krystal Shinners-trained Electrified as a +100 favourite.
The 2022 Group 3 Young Stars Classic winner, and 2023 Group 1 Perth Cup runner-up at Cannington (520m), recently finished just out of the placings in the inaugural The Sandgroper slot race, a week after finishing third in the Listed Lew Dorsa Memorial Trophy final, with both races over the same track and trip.
Electrified has had one start back in WA for a third behind Elite Machine, since an unsuccessful trip to Victoria resulted in two unplaced runs there at Sandown over 515m.
The Christine Robartson-trained No Limit Needed has been declared a +450 second favourite by greyhound punters despite being another greyhound that, like Electrified, hasn't won a race in its last five starts.
No Limit Needed is attempting to make her first black-type race final in 44 starts.
Damien Crudeli trains the two in-form greyhounds in the first heat with Paua Of Molly from box one, and My Time from box four, both recent winners.
Paua Of Molly (+900) was unplaced behind Elite Machine in the Listed Lew Dorsa Memorial Trophy three runs ago, but secured a 30.12 Cannington 520m 5th grade win two starts back.
My Time (+750) ran fourth in both the Listed Mandurah Derby at Northam, and the Group 2 WA Derby at Cannington, before winning last start at Cannington in a 4th/5th grade over 520m in 30.17.
The second heat of the 2023 Listed Winter Cup at Cannington features the greyhound around which all the first heat's form centres, Elite Machine.
Jamie Marsh's 2023 Group 1 Perth Cup winner has won eight of his past 11 starts, including the Listed Lew Dorsa Memorial Trophy, and ran places at two of the three non winning runs.
One of those places was in the inaugural 2023 The Sandgroper, finishing third behind Crumble Monelli in the $300,000 to the winner slot race.
2023 Group 1 Perth Cup (Cannington, 520m) – Elite Machine (30.17) T: Jamie Marsh
Unsurprisingly greyhound bookmakers have Elite Machine priced a firm -142.86 favourite in greyhound betting.
It is impossible to see the son of Aussie Infrared and Pat's Lass missing qualifying for next week's final, especially given he is unbeaten starting from box three in two career starts.
Paul Stuart's Barbeque Man has won half of his 10 career starts, with four of those five wins being registered as sub-30.00 second wins at Cannington over the 520m.
If Elite Machine has any danger at all it will be from Barbeque Man, who has been priced accordingly, and will start at greyhound odds of +320.
Dandalup Blazer is the only other greyhound priced under double figures at +600 with greyhound betting apps, who may have any chance of upsetting Elite Machine.
Dandalup Blazer has won five of 18 career starts for trainer Corey White, and was a 29.76 best-of-night winner two starts ago at Cannington over 520m.
The Listed Winter Cup final will be run at Cannington on June 10, with $19.950 on offer to the winning connections.
The Winter Cup heats are races three and four on Saturday night's Cannington greyhound race program.
The first of the heats is timed to start at 8:00pm AWST local time (10:00pm AEST).