Mark Giddings has endured a bittersweet few weeks but he is hoping Lioness Lulu can provide him with welcome cheer in Saturday night’s Group 1 Sky Racing Galaxy Cup (715m) heats at Cannington.
The recent Group 1 Association Cup winner and last week’s Group 3 Wentworth Park Gold Cup runner-up jumps from box three in the fourth and final heat of the $80,000-to-the-winner series.
Giddings’ father and former trainer Brian Davis, a popular face in Victorian greyhound circles, sadly passed away shortly before the Gold Cup decider.
Giddings will travel back from WA for his father’s funeral on Monday and said it had been an understandably emotional few days.
“It was quite hard to be interested in last week’s racing,” Giddings said. “I just had an empty feeling inside and I just wanted to get home.
“This is the first time Lioness Lulu and I have been on a plane but she seems to have travelled really well and she’s in good condition.
“Because he’s been racing so much we haven’t worked her too hard so she’s still reasonably fresh.
“She looks fine and she’s ready to rumble.”
Novice trainer Giddings has enjoyed a dream recent run of success with $2000 bargain buy Lioness Lulu.
After a fairly unremarkable racing career, she has taken her prize money earnings to more than $120,000 with her strong performances in the two Sydney series.
Lioness Lulu has won three of her four starts over the last month and has won once and placed four times from six previous starts from box three.
“She took a tumble in the catching pen at Wentworth Park last week,” Giddings said. “We were umming and aahing about bringing her over to WA, but she seems to be fine.
“It’s a tough race. Blinker’s On (box two) is a real warrior and Acheron (box seven) has been running very well over here in WA recently.
“(But) Lioness Lulu is boxed okay. She can run two dogs off the fence the whole way round and in current form she’s a definite chance.”
Others to watch in the three heats include Heaps Of Ability (box four, heat one), Dublin Bull (box three, heat two) and Luna Jinx (box six, heat three).
The night’s racing is headlined by eight heats of the Group 1 Sky Racing Perth Cup (520m).
Recent Group 1 Golden Easter Egg winner Moreira jumps from box five in the second heat and looks a good chance to progress to the decider.
Kennelmate Dalgetty, himself a Group 1 winner, has won his last two starts at Sandown Park and looks ideally drawn to win heat one.
Others to watch include Victorian star Shared Equity (box two, heat three), class local contender Fun Boss (box one, heat five) and Above All, who also looks ideally drawn in box one to win heat six.
Both finals conclude next Saturday night as part of a super night’s racing at Cannington.
For Cannington Saturday fields, form and expert picks, click here
