All-conquering Victorian staying superstar Amity Bale will return to Wentworth Park on Saturday night where she looks a good thing in the opening heat of the Group Two Summer Cup.
Amity Bale continued her feature race rampage last Monday night when she broke The Meadows 725 metre track record when demoralising her rivals with a nine length romp in the Group Two City Of Hume Cup.
The Graeme Bate- trained dynamo has won her past seven starts, including four Group events – the Sydney and Chairman’s Cups, both at Wentworth Park, the Sir John Dillon Memorial at Sandown and her last start City Of Hume Cup success.
She’s won three of her four starts over 720 metres at Glebe and it’s almost impossible to see her being beaten in her Summer Cup heat from an ideal inside draw (box two).
Her rivals include the promising local prospect Salvatore, trained by the astute Eric Castle, which is unbeaten in two appearances over the half-mile at headquarters.
Salvatore has led throughout in posting 42.70 and 42.87 wins at his past two starts, but with Amity Bale having a Wenty Park personal best of 42.19 and coming off a record-breaking run at The Meadows, those times aren’t likely to be anywhere near good enough to lower the favourite’s colours.
Amity Bale will be joined in the opening Cup heat by her kennelmate Jarvis Bale, winner of the National Distance Championship at Cannington in September.
The second of the two Summer Cup heats sees the return to Wentworth Park of the hugely talented but enigmatic Forty Twenty (box six).
Forty Twenty was given a let-up by trainer John Heard after several below par efforts in August but he’s returned in great order, if his comeback performance at Richmond on Monday is any guide.
Resuming over 618 metres, Forty Twenty couldn’t have been more impressive, scoring by a dozen lengths in a near record 35.29, just .07 outside Tears’ 35.22 track record.
That performance will ensure Forty Twenty will be strongly fancied in Saturday night’s Cup heat, but he won’t have things his own way in a solid race, with rails runner Reign Over Me, runner-up to Amity Bale in both the Sydney and Chairman’s Cups, certain to have plenty of admirers.
Others with claims in the second run-off include Tifi (box seven) and Amity Bale’s kennelmate Whitfield Bale (box eight).
Best Bet - Race Nine, Number two - Fancy Ace
Quaddie:
Race 5 - 1, 6
Race 6 - 1, 4, 6
Race 7 - 6, 7
Race 8 - 2, 6, 7
$20 for 55.55%