Prentice praises Cyamach
19 February, 2016
Harness
Oldbury horseman Kim Prentice lavished praise on Cyamach and declared him a star bet in the $50,000 Hahn Super Dry 3.5 RWWA Cup over 2536m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“His run when second to Elegant Christian last Friday night was unbelievable,” Prentice said. “It was absolutely awesome. Elegant Christian is a great frontrunner and they’ve gone almost a track record (1.53.9).
“I think he can beat The Bucket List and Heez On Fire. I think he’ll be too strong for them.”
Cyamach, a New Zealand-bred six-year-old trained at Serpentine by Gary Hall sen., will start from barrier five on the front line and is sure to meet with stiff opposition from the likely pacemaker Leda McNally, The Bucket List and Heez On Fire. However, Prentice will not hear of the possibility of Cyamach being beaten.
The gelding has been most impressive since entering Hall’s stables last year. His 18 starts in Western Australia, all at Gloucester Park, have produced seven wins, six seconds and two thirds.
The return to racing of the talented Heez On Fire after an absence of ten months is arousing considerable interest. The WA-bred six-year-old who has won at 16 of his 29 starts for part-owner and trainer Rod Oliver is handily drawn at barrier three on the front line and Oliver is confident he will be prominent first-up.
Heez On Fire last appeared when he raced three wide for most of the journey before winning convincingly from Mohegan Sun over 2536m last April. And Oliver was looking forward optimistically to the interdominion championship series in November and December.
But his plans were dashed when the gelding broke down. “He had a bit of misfortune which required surgery,” Oliver said. ”I knew that there was something wrong with him, but it took ages to find the trouble.
“I went to a few vets, but no one was able to find what the problem was. I ended by taking him to the Murdoch Hospital where they did a CT scan and found the problem. He was suffering from a stress fracture in his near hind leg. It was right at the bottom of the cannon bone and a screw was inserted during the operation in July.
“He was never going to be ready for the Inters. He needed four months rest and the screw is still there in the leg. It has been a slow prep when I brought him back into work at the end of October. We encountered a few other problems along the way, but he is fine now.
“I’ve been taking him to the beach, riding and wading him in the water. I’ve also taken him to the track a couple of times and he’s going really well. So now it’s the time to bite the bullet. I also nominated him for a sprint this week, but Chris (Lewis) reckoned he would be better off over the longer trip first-up because they don’t go as hard.
“Chris will have to give him as soft a trip as he can and, hopefully, he’ll have a finishing burst left and can figure in the finish. He generally goes well first-up, and if he performs well we’ll be looking at the Pinjarra Cup.”
Leda McNally, favourably drawn at barrier two under the conditions of the race which gives mares the inside draws, looks set to lead for Chris Voak. But it is doubtful whether she will be able to withstand the strong finishing runs of Cyamach, Heez On Fire and The Bucket List.
The Bucket List, to be driven by Michael Grantham for Pinjarra trainer Michael Brennan, will have many admirers from his handy barrier at No. 4 on the front line. A winner at 16 of his 56 starts, The Bucket List is in grand form, working hard and covering extra ground when second to Our Ideal Act in the $30,000 Northam Cup and second to Tricky Styx in the $30,000 Narrogin Cup at his past two starts.
Jungle Jewel, trained by Greg and Skye Bond, will start from the coveted No. 1 barrier and Ryan Warwick is expected to enjoy a perfect sit behind the likely pacemaker Leda McNally.
Ken Casellas
Gloucester Park