HORSE RACING: Finally, it has been an outstanding week in thoroughbred racing for the Bunbury Turf Club, local owners, trainers and patrons.
After a frustrating month off due to track conditions everything returned to normal and there was highlight after highlight confirming Bunbury’s status as a major player in the industry.
The action commenced when Myalup trainer Michael Campbell’s stable star Exhilarating ran a mighty race in the Perth Cup to finish a very creditable fourth.
He was against tough local and eastern states opposition in a race won by Guyno who is owned in part by Bunbury Turf Club patron Helen Court and trained by former Collie boy and master trainer Lou Luciano.
Campbell followed that up with a win at Pinjarra last Saturday with an up and coming stable star in Baltime when that steed recorded his seventh win from 10 starts and if that wasn’t sufficient he produced Cock Boy to win race four at the Bunbury meeting on Sunday.
Good to see also Bunbury trainer Matty Daqui bring up a winner for a happy group of local owners.
Oceans Twelve un-leashed his trade mark powerful finish to win a 2000 metre event and make good his recent promising form in the final event at Pinjarra and also finish close up behind the place getters with Frog Legs .
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The much maligned Bunbury Turf Club staged a terrific nine event program on Sunday and the entire meeting went off without a hitch confirming that the main event of the year the week long Bunbury Carnival will go ahead as scheduled in March and feature the Bunbury Cup.
There was a great holiday crowd in attendance for the St George Bank Sunday fun day and everyone on course was delighted when John and Helen Court brought the Perth cup along for all to see and touch and then made a generous gesture in shouting drinks for the large crowd to celebrate the cup win.
Star of the day was claimed by apprentice Jarrod Noske who booted home three winners including a double for Bunbury trainer Michael Lane with Dash Incredible in race three and Mirage West in the fifth.
He completed the hat trick when he rode Dangerous Dane for another local trainer in Peter Giadresco to win race seven.
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Shaun Meres rode a winning double, Cocky Boy for Campbell and Cervino for yet another local trainer in Rob Witten. Together with John Parker being successful with Cook’s Action ridden by Kelly Davidson in the first along with the Brent Larsson trained long shot Double Barrel ridden by Taz Sellah in race six meant that Bunbury based trainers produced seven of the nine winners on a very successful day for the locals.
Other winners were the Adam Durrant trained Cornwall in race two and George’s Park who was very impressive in winning the final event for Sarah Todd.
Horse followers of this column should keep an eye out for Lane’s Captain Feathers, (scratched due to wide barrier on Sunday), Dash Incredible and Mirage West, Campbell’s Balfine and Cocky Boy, Lukaston, Chance in Time, Core Asset and Dangerous Dane for Giadresco, Double Barrel and Scarlatina for Larson and Insurgency for Spencer Knight.
The next meetings to be conducted by Bunbury Turf Club will be T-Quip race day on Thursday, January 15, and School Holiday Fun day on Wednesday, January 21.
Happy punting.