A second champion of the world’s richest middle-distance race - the GRNSW Country Classic - will be crowned on Saturday night at Dubbo, with over 2,000 people expected to pack into Dawson Park for an unforgettable night of chasing and entertainment.
The $125,000-to-the-winner Country Classic is the jewel in the crown of the 12-race program, with a crack field assembling to try and etch their names in the record books.
John and Minnie Finn will be hoping to replicate the memorable scenes of last year when kennel king ZIPPINGKyrgios claimed the inaugural running of the race.
“That night [last year] was the best night of my life in greyhound racing…the crowd was enormous and just walking out, the people were 10 deep so the atmosphere was great,” Minnie Finn said.
“And it was an absolutely amazing win for Kyrgios. I think the whole concept is really good, the track at Dubbo is great, the club facilities and food was spot on, and I even googled Jason Owen so I’ll probably sing along to a few songs now,” Finn laughed.
The Finn’s returning to Dubbo with a new face in 2023 as Tania Keeping looks to continue her stellar form throughout the series on Saturday night.
“I’m ready to go back-to-back, I just hope she is too. She’s got to come out better than she did last week but if she leads, she’ll be hard to run down. I think whatever leads will win it actually,” Finn added.
Two kennels bring dual chances into the race, with Andy and Jodie Lord rugging up fastest qualifier Bandit Jane and litter brother Grim Madara.
The pair emerging over the last six months as arguably the most promising middle-distance greyhounds in NSW.
And the powerful Mark Delbridge kennel also has two runners engaged, with Valor Bale (Box 6) and Ailee Bale (Box 7) both double figure chances in the race.
A chance at redemption the driving force behind Delbridge’s assault on the race after Jarick Bale finished eighth in the final last year.
“It was a bit disappointing not to run a place with Jarick but we’ve got two dogs through this time and it’d be worth all the driving if one of them could take it out,” Delbridge said.
“Valor Bale will probably miss the start and get onto the rail I suppose. He’ll have bums in front of him but hopefully they can peel off and he can keep railing. And Ailee is my best chance I suppose. I would have preferred her inside but she’ll be up on the pace out of the boxes at least,” Delbridge added.
Nangar Rocket is the only local hope in the race for Cudal-based trainer Dennis Barnes, while Showman Jack and Jackpot Joan make up the remainder of the field and will jump from the wings (Boxes 1 and 8 respectively) in the feature final.
President of the Dubbo Greyhound Racing Club, Shayne Stiff, echoed the sentiments of Minnie Finn when casting his mind back to last year’s meeting.
“Mate, I’ve been going to dog tracks for 54 years now and it’s probably the best meeting I’ve ever been to. It was like the old days of Worth Doing and National Lass and National Lee and all the old days at Harold Park. It was packed to the rafters and everyone wanted to be there,” Stiff said.
Stiff believing the winner of the GRNSW Country Classic will come from an inside draw.
“The way the box draw has fallen, I could only have four hopes…probably in the order of Bandit Jane, Tania Keeping, Showman Jack and Nangar Rocket. I’d say Tania Keeping but I might be a bit bias so Bandit Jane will be hardest to beat. When you break nine seconds to the mark at Dubbo you’re flying. The best eight 600m dogs in the country are in this race though and it’s just very, very exciting,” Stiff said.
Elsewhere on the card, a Maiden series final over 318m will be run and won, the Barcia Blue Boy at Stud Final will take place over 318m as well, while the winner of the Orana Vet mixed fourth/fifth grade decider will take home $10,000 in prizemoney.
Off the track and local country music superstar Jason Owen will perform LIVE during the meeting. He follows in the footsteps of Shannon Noll who had the crowd jumping from start to finish during his set 12-months ago.
Tickets for the Dubbo Country Classic Final Night are now on sale for just $7.50 Dubbo-greyhounds-country-classic-featuring-jason-owen">HERE. Tickets are also available at the gate unless sold out.
