Young believes the sky is the limit for the New Zealand gelding, who is unbeaten in four WA starts – in the space of a month in March and April last year – and is primed for victory this week in his first outing after a nine-month absence.
Hugotastic revealed excellent potential in his four WA wins against modest opposition in limited company. And Young is convinced he is destined for the top.
Hugotastic will be ridden in a race for the first time by Emily Suvaljko, who was in disarray when he impressed in a 2150m four-horse trial at Byford last Saturday. He was in last place in the Indian tailback affair before going in at the bell and moving into the wind outside pacer Nathan Street.
Nathan Street and Hugotastic were locked together for the final 600 metres, with neither pacer fully stretched as they crossed the line together, with Nathan Street taking the verdict with a head and a rating of 1.58.3, with final 400 meter sections of 29.6 seconds. and 26.9 sec.
“He finished the trial nicely with a fast final quarter, and I’m really happy to have him back for what I hope is a springboard to bigger and better things,” Young said.
“We’ll aim for the highest and see where we end up. We’re aiming for the Nullarbor final race on April 17. He still has to prove himself, but he’s pretty smart. I haven’t shopped him yet (for a slot holder in the $1,250,000 Nullarbor).
“Now I’m looking for him to prove himself in the races to see if he’s ready. If not, we’ll aim a little lower. In his most recent start (over the 2130m win at Gloucester Park on April 18 last year) he had a fracture in his hind leg.”
“Friday evening (from barrier No. 4) Hugotastic will work forward. His biggest asset in New Zealand was his gate speed. We have not drawn to light him, and we do not intend to light him this week. However, if the lead is there, that will be good; otherwise we will be happy to race in the wind.”
Hugotastic is unlikely to have an easy task in his comeback race, with the three runners drawn to him – Captain Confetti, Whataretheodds and Quinton – all racing in good form, and quality performers Youre So Fine (barrier seven), Nerano (eight) and Better Eclipse (nine) capable of strong performances.
Gary Hall junior trains and rides Better Eclipse, who had a tough run over 2536 meters last Friday as he settled into last place, running three wide in the middle stages and then into the wind before finishing second by half a length behind Magnus Victor. A week earlier, Better Eclipse took the lead after one lap and narrowly won from Golden Lode over 2130 meters.
Hall junior also trains My Watchlist, who has recorded impressive victories over 2130 meters in his past three appearances at Gloucester Park. He will start from inside the backline with Maddison Brown in the sulky.
Star Hopeland trainer-leader Aiden De Campo has three runners in the race: Rockandrollartist (barrier six), Dame Valor (barrier two on the back line) and Sorridere, who will start from the outside of the back line.
“Not great draws for three of them,” said De Campo, who has opted to handle Sorridere, with Joey Suvaljko managing Rockandrollartist and Ajay Markham managing Dame Valour.
“If Rockandrollartist leads, he will be hard to beat; Sorridere is racing well without winning; while Dame Valor is flying but faces a tough task against good male opposition.”
Liam Elliott has opted to pilot pole marker Captain Confetti instead of Whataretheodds, the Ryan Bell-trained seven-year-old who will make his first start since Elliott rode him to a nose victory at Cams Boulder over 2130 meters in early July. Ryan Warwick has been engaged to helm Whataretheodds.
For full race entries, click here.
Through Ken Casellasfor Gloucester Park
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