Trained by Greg and Skye Bond and piloted by Deni Roberts, Mad Monday starts wide from barrier eight, and his clash with Captain Stirling (barrier nine) should provide plenty of fireworks.
He started from boundary number 5 on Tuesday and raced in the one-out and two-back positions before Roberts took him three wide in the 400 metres. He sprinted strongly but just missed out on beating Yawoma, who posted a score of 1.56.1, with final 400m sections of 27.7 seconds. and 28.8 sec.
“He went really well and it was a really good test for Friday night,” Roberts said.
Top trainer leader Dylan Egerton-Green is expecting a strong effort from captain Stirling, who will make his first appearance since his standout performance in the Group 1 WA Derby three Fridays ago.
From barrier seven, Captain Stirling, a $41 outsider, charged forward three wide early to move into third before Egerton-Green had to hold him back until last in the field of twelve.
Captain Stirling was still last at the bell before making up ground around the inside and then storming home with a wide run to finish second behind Runkle Crunch.
“It’s quite difficult this week,” Egerton-Green said. “But I expect him to do well, just like his stablemate and last-start winner Full Swing Denario, who is piloted from barrier seven by Trent Wheeler.”
There will also be strong interest in the New Zealand-bred Beaudiene Hunter, which is owned and trained by Tony Giglietta and will be piloted by Chris Voak from the No. 5 barrier.
Beaudiene Hunter impressed with a very easy victory in a 2185m trial at Pinjarra last Wednesday, which followed his failure at Gloucester Park 15 days earlier when he retired after starting at a gallop.
He worked hard without cover on his three previous outings for seconds to Troubadour and Charivari and a smart win at Gloucester Park over Hunger Strike and Fabulous Dream.
“Beaudiene Hunter is a very nice horse, but I don’t think we will see the best of him until a new preparation,” said Voak. “He’s very headstrong; he hangs around and is a bit immature.”
Voak is also looking forward to piloting Fat Louie, who will move on after a spell when he starts from boundary number 6 in the $21,000 Westral Roller Shutters Pace over 2130 metres.
Fat Louie is a New Zealand-bred four-year-old who has raced ten times for four wins and four placings. “He’s had some lameness issues, but he’s overcome them and is functioning very well,” Voak said. “He led in a recent standing start test at Pinjarra and won easily, coming home in 27.4 seconds. He worked very well this morning (Tuesday) and I would like to take the lead on Friday evening.”
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Through Ken Casellas, for Gloucester Park
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