Ritza Piper's astonishing 25 lengths winning romp at Wentworth Park last Wednesday ranks alongside the initial 720m appearance by Zipping Kansas as the most impressive first-up long distance wins at headquarters.
Zipping Kansas led all the way on February 19 to win in 41.57 while last week Ritza Piper produced a similarly stunning performance to lead throughout in 41.89.
Ritza Piper, trained by Joe Scerri in the Wollongong suburb of Berkeley, returns to Wentworth Park on Wednesday night where she has box five and will be long odds-on to take out race four, a 720m fifth grade.
Her opposition this week is slightly stronger, with the Andy Lord-trained Silver Luck, who has drawn four, having had a win and three placings from five Wentworth Park 720m outings.
But Silver Luck's best time at Wentworth Park is 42.16, the equivalent of four lengths slower than the figures posted last Wednesday by Ritza Piper.
Being drawn in Wednesday night's opening race is a huge advantage for his greyhound Rockstar Cabello according to trainer Chris Nutt.
Rockstar Cabello has box four in the NSW GBOTA Welcome Stakes, a 520m fifth grade, and Nutt said: "She is a bit of a hot head who barks a lot in the race night kennels.
"So I prefer seeing her in an early race.
"Box four should not worry her as she tends to run in the centre of the track and having a vacant box outside her is a huge plus.
"Rockstar Cabello has been trialling extremely well and is going a lot better than her form looks on paper.
"In each of her past two starts at Wentworth Park she has had no luck at all, and I think she was going to win last week until she was flattened while making her run on the back straight before finishing fourth.''
Nutt has Rockstar Cabello's litter sister Rockstar Lopez in the winningedgeinvestments.com Stakes, a 520m fifth grade, and she is superbly drawn in box seven.
Rockstar Lopez led throughout from box seven at her most recent start, at Wentworth Park on August 31, and has the same draw on Wednesday.
"She has not raced for a month because following her Wenty win Rockstar Lopez picked up a bug and was sick for two or three days,'' Nutt said.
"I had intended nominating her for the GRNSW Young Star series which culminated last Saturday night but her illness forced me to scrap that plan.
"She has gone pretty well in two recent trials so while she lacks race fitness she should be hard to beat.''
Coast Model gave favourite backers a scare when she came from fourth early to win over 520m at WP last Wednesday but should give her supporters no cause for worry this week.
Before last week's race trainer Andy Lord was concerned about Coast Model's box eight draw and sure enough, she was unable to cross to the rails at the first turn and was pushed back to midfield.
The $1.85 hot pot stormed home from third at the top of the straight to win in 29.91 but has drawn perfectly in box one in Wednesday's 520m Ladbrokes Switch Free-For-All.
Best "match" of the night on Wednesday comes in the Ladbrokes Bet Ticker Stakes, where Romantic Style (box one) and Zipping Sabrina (box seven) clash in the 520m fifth grade.
Zipping Sabrina had box seven when she won her heat of the GRNSW Young Star in a smart 29.84 on September 17 and was skittled early when sixth from her unsuitable box two slot in Saturday's final.
Romantic Style is "desperate" for an inside draw and has won three of her four appearances from boxes one and two.
She has not raced at Wentworth Park since finishing third, from box five, on August 11, but had recorded her quickest Wenty figures of 30.04 after winning from box two five nights earlier.
"I thought Romantic Style was a bit unlucky whe second over 401m at Richmond last Wednesday and she is certainly well boxed,'' trainer George Borg said.
"This will be her first 520m test for more than a month but I expect her to be in front around the first turn and she should be hard to beat.''
