He was second in the world’s richest greyhound race six months ago, and now Jamella Jet is a Group winner after collecting the spoils in Saturday’s The Ambrosoli.
The Ambrosoli, the Group 3 consolation event for runners finishing third and fourth in last week’s Ladbrokes Golden Easter Egg semi-finals, was a star-studded line-up including Jamella Jet’s conqueror in last October’s GRNSW + Ladbrokes Million Dollar Chase, Mystic Riot, but when the speedster found his way into third spot out of the straight the first time, he was always going to be hard to hold out.
Trained by father and son combination Andrew and Adam Crouch, Jamella Jet has had just 23 starts for 10 wins and eight placings. On Saturday, he clocked 29.88s in running down Victorian Fabwik with odds-on favourite Fernando Blaster - who had been perfectly placed in second going out of the straight - unable to match the finishing burst of the winner, and having to be satisfied with third.
“It’s good for him to have picked up his first Group win. Even to have a dog racing on this night is great, so to win a race is fantastic,” Adam Crouch said. “I closed my eyes as they went into the first turn, but when he got clear down the back, I was confident.”
Adam, who said Jamella Jet is “pretty much back to his best now,” added they will now consider taking Jamella Jet to Sandown in Victoria for a shot at the upcoming Speed Star series.
“We are considering sending him down to Sandown for the Speed Star because we know how quick he is solo, but we’ll see how he pulls up after tonight.”
Forbes-trainer Ray Smith, who qualified finalists for both the Easter Egg and the Group 1 Association Cup, opened his account on the night with Group 3 success when talented youngster Feral Franky took out the Group 3 New Sensation.
A noted slow beginner, Feral Franky was able to avoid the first turn scrimmage, rail through into second spot and from there it was just a matter of whether he could run down the leader, Nangar Diva.
He did, clocking 29.87s to hold off the fast-finishing King Cratos with Nangar Diva hanging on for third.
“There looked to be a bit of trouble on the first turn, and once he got through I thought we were in with a good chance from there,” Smith said.
In the night’s other Group 3 final, the Ladbrokes Magic Maiden, it was that breed, the offspring of Chica Destacada, to the fore again, with brothers and sisters filling the first four places in the final.
The winner was Timeless Moment, trained by Kerry Drynan, whose mother Doreen trained Chica Destacada.
“Oh she would be so happy. She is always happy when the breed is doing well,” Kerry said of her mother. “To be honest I didn’t think she could get across from out there (box 7), but she showed a lot of guts to win.”
Timeless Moment, despite clocking the fastest time of the semi-finalists, wasn‘t among the main fancies mainly due to the wide draw, but she pinged out and was into second at the first turn, then overpowered her sister Making A Memory, and held off another sister, favourite Really Unreal, to win in 30.03s and claim the big prize. Really Unreal was second, Making A Memory third and sibling Blue Summer Sky was fourth.
And victory in the listed Ultra Sense - named after the inaugural Easter Egg winner in 1990 - went to Jason Magri's Zipping Falcon who clocked a slick 29.74s.
