Riley Tokaam again reigned supreme at Wentworth Park on Saturday night with the Group 3 Christmas Gift winner taking out the Free-For-All in 29.96, far and away the fastest Time of the night.
The Jason MACKAY-trained greyhound again made full use of a preferred wide draw to hit the front on the back straight and win by over eight lengths, coming home in a sizzling 11.76 on a slow track.
It was a slashing trial for Riley Tokaam's next assignment, a heat of the Group 2 Woy Woy Poultry Gold Cup at Gosford on Tuesday night.
"Riley Tokaam won't have any trouble backing up at Gosford, in fact he thrives on that sort of training,'' MACKAY said on Saturday.
"He will even have a couple of runs around my property on Sunday morning and afternoon because this dog full of nervous energy.
"You have to treat every greyhound differently and if I try to keep him cooped up Riley Tokaam goes off his head!''
MACKAY had a massive night at Wentworth Park, landing a winning treble and also snaring the trifecta with ZIPPING Blaze, ZIPPING Clive and Aston Duke in the Ladbrokes Odds Boost Final.
ZIPPING Blaze railed underneath early leader Dreaming Time going through the catching pen and held off a late challenge from ZIPPING Clive to score by a length, with Aston Duke a luckless third, just over two lengths away.
ZIPPING Blaze is ineligible by one month for the Group 1 Ladbrokes National Derby heats on January 27 but ZIPPING Clive, Aston Duke and MACKAY's third winner on Saturday night, ZIPPING Mack, will be in the series.
ZIPPING Mack is rated especially highly by MACKAY and the dog won Saturday's opening race in a slow 30.67, on a surface which became progressively drier as the meeting progressed.
"ZIPPING Mack is a fast dog but he is pretty dumb at this stage,'' MACKAY admitted after his greyhound "made a meal'' of getting around pacemaker Drink Schooners leaving the back straight.
ZIPPING Clive is a wide runner who was not suited by box one on Saturday but encouragingly, he did race more tractably than when he won at his Wentworth Park debut from box seven on December 13.
Aston Duke would have finished second to ZIPPING Blaze had he not been inconvenienced on the back straight by the tiring Dreaming Time.
A three months spell has transformed King Panda according to trainer Frank Hurst.
The Londonderry conditioner took over King Panda's training early this year but after a few below par performances Hurst decided to turn the dog out for three months.
"He has come back a far better dog,'' Hurst said after King Panda came from fifth on the back straight and third on the home turn to win by over two lengths.
"His win tonight didn't surprise me as he has been flying at the provincials, winning at Dapto on December 14 after running a phenomenal second there a week earlier.''
Another greyhound to bounce back to top form on Saturday was the JODIE Lord-trained Zambora Cross, who led throughout to defeat Techno and Flyrite, another from the Lord kennels, in a 520m fourth and fifth grade.
Zambora Cross had been beaten in a dozen successive Wentworth Park races before beginning brilliantly and stopping the clock at 30.28 on Saturday, equalling the second best Time of the meeting with Liberty Lee.
See you next week
