Brilliant speedster Hardaway Ranger went within a whisker of breaking the 297m record at Dapto on July 8 and will be looking to land his fifth successive victory at Bulli on Tuesday.
The son of Fernando Bale improved his winning strike rate to better than 50% at Dapto (13 from 24) and it’s a return for trainer Ron Marsden which is not out of the ordinary.
Based at Condell Park in suburban Sydney, Marsden boasts a stunning 45% winner-to-runner ratio since 2018 (from just 13 individuals), with Hardaway Harada and Hardaway Titan winning 35 and 31 races respectively in that time.
Hardaway Ranger’s Dapto assignment followed a sizzling 22.15s win at Bulli on June 29 yet, well as he’s going, his task is by no means easy.
High speed abounds. Radiation was well supported to beat Hardaway Ranger at Dapto on Thursday, yet a moderate getaway from Box 3 culled any prospect of a win and he finished third clocking 17.04s. Though untried at Bulli over 400m, Radiation has won at the spacious circuit in a slick 18.99s over 340m, and has the zip to match Hardaway Ranger early on.
Ebby Infrared (Box 3) and the suitably positioned Five Second Rule (6) are also in the mix. A slick 17.74s winner up the Richmond straight track on July 10, Ebby Infrared has prevailed in 37 of 93 career starts and has been racing in Free For All company since November 2019 - an imposing and impressive record.
Wide runner Five Second Rule is back in distance on recent starts at Wentworth Park (520m) and at Bulli (472m) yet his most recent 400m assignment at Bulli on June 8 resulted in a slick 22.20s win.
Later in the night, Marsden’s youngster Sandave Diamond contests the Ladbrokes Red Dogs Final (400m) and will start favourite following the scratching of fastest heat winner Hyperventilate.
Sandave Diamond lacks Hardaway Ranger’s brilliance yet has saluted in four of seven starts – a solid contributor to Marsden’s remarkable strike rate.
In other news, Bulli will again race this Saturday with the metropolitan meeting at Wentworth Park transferred south and all graded races attain city prizemoney (a minimum of $5000 to-the-winner).
