Ibrox Wildfire earned a crack at the September 30 heats of the group 2 Black Top at LADBROKES GARDENS with her personal best equalling 29.55 winning romp at Wentworth Park on Saturday night.
Undefeated Zipping Orlando, whose come-from-behind 29.65 victory in Saturday's GRNSW Young Star final, could also be a Black Top entry.
After Saturday's win Zipping Orlando's trainer John Finn declared the Black Top would be the greyhound's next assignment.
But Finn's wife Minnie said: "I am going to try and talk John out of it because I'm not sure The Gardens will suit our dog.''
Ibrox Wildfire's trainer Billy Dance also concedes The Gardens might not be his greyhound's ideal venue, but added: "It looks a good race for Ibrox Wildfire and besides, it is just up the road from where we live.''
Dance, who is based on the Central Coast at Somersby, said: "Ibrox Wildfire has improved so much because not long ago she struggled to break 30sec at Wenty and now she has won seven races there and clocked 29.55 twice.
"At the same time she is not as fast as her litter brother Mac Ibrox, but he is not a good race dog like his sister.''
The brief career of the enigmatic Road Spike is hanging by a thread after another wayward performance by the super talented rising four year old at Bulli last Tuesday.
Road Spike gave Good Odds Emma, who can run a powerful 590m and has clocked a scorching 29.57 over 520m at Wentworth Park, six lengths start and picked her up in a few strides at the halfway mark.
When Road Spike noticed that pair sail past he took off again, winding up third, beaten just under three lengths.
Not surprisingly, stewards ruled after the race that as this was Road Spike's fourth failing to pursue the lure offence, he cannot race for three months and before resuming must trial satisfactorily on two occasions.
Road Spike is not only among the fastest greyhounds currently in Australia, but is undoubtedly one of the quickest I have seen in 60 years.
But his erratic behaviour has seen the January 2019, whelping contest just 13 races for five wins, four seconds and two thirds.
He won on debut at Wentworth Park on December 9, 2020, but has not won again in the metropolitan area, his remaining four victories being at Bathurst and Richmond.
To illustrate just how much ability Road Spike possesses, his former trainer Paul Roach displayed an official 520m result from a recent 29.50 520m Richmond trial which showed the dog's run home time was 11.08sec.
Those figures stunned leading Sydney trainer Jason Magri, who commented: "My dog Zipping Kansas runs home there in 11.20 so that is simply incredible.''
The Richard Stock-owned, Charmaine Field-trained Verstappen won a Masters race over 272m at LADBROKES GARDENS last Wednesday and will attempt a winning double there this Wednesday.
"She had been lightly raced before going to Fernando Bale because whenever she came in season Verstappen would take a long while to strike form again,'' owner Richard Stock said.
"Although she turns five in October Verstappen is going great and although she won at The Gardens, she is not really suited there as she has always been a better greyhound on a roomy track like Maitland.''
Verstappen is one of several "super mums" who have made a successful racetrack return after producing babies, the most famous being the great Victorian stayer Flashing Floods.
In 2007 she won the National Distance Championship at Sandown and Cannington's group 1 Perth Galaxy after whelping a litter in June, 2006.
