She's A Pearl was a warm favourite for the Ladbrokes Golden Easter Egg long before Saturday night's first round at Wentworth Park but she is truly all the rage after her sprinter's master class in heat seven when she led throughout in 29.47.
Those figures were only .01sec outside She's A Pearl's personal best time posted from her previous 10 Wentworth Park victories.
Before Saturday's race trainer Jodie Lord declared She's A Pearl "a special" in a preview on the dogs website and her greyhound vindicated her confidence with a dazzling first split of 5.34.
Nobody was more impressed with She's A Pearl than Jason MACKAY, who trained the 2019 Golden Easter Egg winner Zipping Bailey and won a heat on Saturday night with Fantastic Raven in 29.84.
"I just hope Fantastic Raven doesn't draw the same semi-final as She's A Pearl next Saturday,'' MACKAY quipped.
"Rosehill races were called off today so the Wenty track had to be on the slow side, and I reckon on a lightning fast surface She's A Pearl would have clocked 29.20.
"But I was happy with Fantastic Raven because she has kept improving with every run since she joined my kennels from Victoria in late December.
"Fantastic Raven is racing keenly and winning a couple of middle distance races over 600m at LADBROKES GARDENS and over 605m at Dubbo this month has boosted her confidence, she is chockfull of it at present.
"Because she is beginning so well I would love a dry, fast track for her next week.''
Victoria's Jason Thompson, who has won Golden Easter Eggs with Don't Knocka Him and Moreira, revealed that his Brisbane Cup winner Equalizer, who won heat three on Saturday night in 29.85, was almost scratched from the series.
"After he won at The Meadows on March 19 Equalizer was completely flattened,'' Thompson said on Saturday.
"That was only his second race in seven months and it was real gut-buster of a run.
"If I been forced to make a decision about an Easter Egg start as late as last Wednesday I would have scratched Equalizer from tonight's race, that's how bad he was.
"He had never seen Wentworth Park until tonight but he railed through into second spot at the first turn and came away to win easily so I think he can only get better.''
Second fastest heat winner on Saturday was Handsome Rhino, trained in Victoria by Paul Galea, who ran down National Derby finalist Boston Garden to win his heat in 29.73.
Handsome Rhino had not previously seen the Wentworth Park track and despite racing very wide, over-powered fellow Victorian Boston Garden in the run home.
National Futurity winner Idolize, trained in Victoria by Peter Presutto, retained her unbeaten Wentworth Park record with an all-the-way heat win in 29.82.
Idolize clocked 29.80 in her National Futurity final win and took her Wentworth Park tally to three from three with an nearly identical performance on Saturday.
The Joe Comito-trained Hold Me Up, classified as a fifth grader at Wentworth Park and a winner of just one previous race at headquarters, led throughout to win his heat in 29.87 while Louis Rumble and Tachycardic each won in 29.90.
Louis Rumble led throughout for Steve Kavanagh, who raced the 2010 Egg winner Cosmic Rumble, while Tachycardic, at $51, was the longest priced winner of the heats for Kayla-Jane COLEMAN.
Only heat winners not to break 30sec were Mick Hardman's Analysing and Queenslander Mitchell Street for Jedda Cutlack in 30.21.
Perhaps significantly they took out the two opening heats and there seems little doubt the track dried out and became quicker as the night progressed.
