Assertive Bella and Shoulders fared best in the box draw for the Group 1 Ladbrokes Paws Of Thunder with the former, a new addition to Jason Mackay’s kennels, coming up with the prized rails box.
But trainer Anthony Azzopardi was equally pleased when his dog Shoulders drew six, the same draw he had in his dynamic all-the-way win in Saturday night’s heats.
Shoulders and Melbourne Cup winner Dyna Villa, who drew eight in the final, shared fastest heat times of 29.64 but Azzopardi’s dog’s performance was more meritorious.
Incessant light rain had turned the Wentworth Park surface into a sloppy bog by the time Shoulders raced, while Dyna Villa had first use of the course, more than two hours earlier.
Assertive Bella had final use of the gluey surface yet managed to clock a slick 29.82, producing an impressive run-home time of 11.69.
Before her race Mackay’s kennel foreman Milo Vodagez predicted Assertive Bella would better her Wentworth Park debut winning time of 29.97, posted a week earlier.
And after the race he added: "We think there is a bit more improvement in her yet."
Meanwhile, leading bookmaker Sam Vardakas said: "The box draw certainly makes Assertive Bella look the one to beat in the final."
But Anthony Azzopardi said: "I didn’t want box one for Shoulders because for some reason he just doesn’t seem to go well from the three inside draws.
"It is when he draws four to eight that he seems to ping the lids and before the draw I joked to his owners that it would be great if he could get box six in the final, considering he handled it so well in the heats."
Whittaker’s trainer Julie Fletcher was naturally disappointed with her dog’s box five draw but her husband Bruce was more optimistic.
"Whittaker (pictured, black rug) does not have a great deal of early speed but is extremely strong and I don’t think we have ever had a greyhound with such uncanny balance," he said.
"In tonight’s heat Whittaker got onto the heels of pacemaker Dyna Nico at the top of the straight but didn’t miss a beat or get out of stride.
"He simply pulled to the outside and finished strongly to win comfortably.
"Whittaker has done that before and while most greyhounds lose some momentum when they get onto a rival’s heels, Whittaker is able to balance up again without losing any ground."
While Victorian-trained dogs won four of the eight heats, Coolabah Jet gave NSW a fourth finalist by leading throughout in heat three in a slick 29.88.
Ray Dixon, who handled Coolabah Jet for Jodie Lord, winner of the 2014 Wentworth Park Trainers’ Premiership, said later: "Coolabah Jet is really firing at the moment.
"The good thing about her is that she has got early speed but is also fairly strong at the finish."
Full box draw for Saturday’s Ladbrokes Paws Of Thunder final is: 1. Assertive Bella 2. Kerrigan Bale 3. Spring Leaf 4. Coolabah Jet 5. Whittaker 6. Shoulders 7. Maximum Lil 8. Dyna Villa 9. Zipping Tarn 10. Double Dee One.
