Wow She’s Fast “born to do this” after defending Phoenix title
Wow She’s Fast was simply born to run in big feature races, and this was why co-trainer Jackie Greenough never harboured any doubts before her historic Phoenix win at The Meadows.
The great bitch nicknamed Sharni – not even three years old – is now arguably Australia’s greatest ever greyhound.
What isn’t disputed is the fact she has become the country’s highest prizemoney earner, with 18 wins from just 26 starts meaning she’s pulled in a cool $2.25 million for connections.
From the tricky box six in the world’s richest greyhound race – with $1 million going to the winner – Wow She’s Fast once again showed class and nous beyond her age to salute in front of many of her adoring fans.
The way she mowed down fellow great bitch She’s A Pearl on the back straight in such a calculated fashion is something her hundreds of supporters trackside will never forget.
Her time of 29.84 seconds over the 525m was enough to edge out young gun Amron Boy at the line for Brooke and Jamie Ennis.
It was the second consecutive Phoenix victory for Wow She’s Fast, remarkably winning the event last year in just her seventh start.
Back in October, Greenough’s husband and co-trainer Kel Greenough told this publication their once-in-a-generation sprinter has a knack of peaking at the right moments.
A big reason for that is she loves all her fans and the national attention she gets, according to the Greenoughs who are based at Pearcedale.
That was no different on Saturday night.
“I just think she was born to do this. She was literally put on this planet to do this,” Jackie Greenough told Australian Racing Greyhound.
“And she’s achieved everything she can achieve, I think.
“Even if I go up to the local shops where I don’t go very often, the people up there say ‘oh, that dog!’
“They talk about the dog. And I think these are people who are not into greyhound racing.
“They just love her.”
Wow She’s Fast loves all her fans back, too.
“She’s got a terrific attitude, and her favourite thing is the crowd,” Greenough said.
“She certainly grew into her name, that’s for sure.”
This is also why Greenough’s family members are wild about their Sharni.
“They were crazy,” she said with a laugh.
“I’ve got videos of my daughter and sister, and honestly I was embarrassed.
“They enjoyed it.
“The atmosphere (at the track) was like a football match.”
Kel also has developed a close affinity with his champion bitch, while always spreading positivity when talking about her.
He has always known the responsibility that has come with being the conditioner for such a talented greyhound, and he has embraced all of it.
“He’s a person who loves to help people. He tries to help as many people as he can,” Greenough said.
As the old saying goes – never write off a champion.
Wow She’s Fast had $6.60 winning odds with greyhound bookmakers on Saturday night.
The superstar sprinter finished last in the Adelaide Cup and Topgun in October and November, respectively.
And she did not qualify for the Melbourne Cup final, finishing sixth in her heat.
But she bounced back to beat Phoenix favourite Amron Boy in a Showdown event at Sandown on November 26, which was her last start going into last weekend.
Greenough knew that performance would make her very hard to beat in The Phoenix, despite starting from box six.
She did admit she held slight fears regarding Amron Boy from box four – but only slight fears.
“I never doubted her because in all of those races it was circumstances where she had dogs on her inside,” she said.
“I never doubted her at all. It was always the other dogs.
“He (Amron Boy) has been on fire the past few weeks. He was probably the one I feared the most, actually.
“It was almost a replica of last year. It was like deja-vu watching that race.”
At this stage, Wow She’s Fast will likely follow the same schedule next year in search of a stunning hat-trick of Phoenix wins.
She will only turn three on February 13 and – with the way she is managed so well by the Greenoughs – this incredible feat is now indeed possible.
“It’s up to her. She’ll tell her own story whether she gets injured or comes on season,” Greenough said.
“So we’ll just play it by ear, and take it week by week.”
Wow She’s Fast also just lives in the moment on the Greenoughs’ six-acre property with a straight track, never letting anything stress her out.
The Greenoughs don’t even have a lure for her.
And over the next few weeks she will enjoy a break, but she’ll still very much enjoy some trackwork.
Nothing fazes her.
“We don’t have a lure. We just blow a whistle and up she comes,” Greenough said.
“She won’t be running in the next few weeks. She’ll only go for feature races.
“There’s no point running her in just normal races.
“She’ll have a break, but she’ll still gallop in the yard or run up the straight.
“We’ll definitely keep her fit, but she won’t be racing.”
Because she is now Australia’s greatest greyhound earner from just 26 starts, the Greenoughs also do not see any urgency to aim her at the big Sydney features like the Golden Easter Egg or Million Dollar Chase next year.
They did not this year, and they certainly have no regrets.
“They (those Sydney features) at a bad time because we’ll be away. We’ll work out where she can go, when she can go and if she can go,” Greenough said.
“She has no urgency to go anywhere.”