Last start Eye Liner Stakes winner Alma’s Fury is the highest rated sprinter in the nominations for the Listed $175,000 Reed Property Group Glasshouse Handicap (1400m) at the Sunshine Coast on Saturday.
Alma's Fury, red cap, holds off Masthead, purple, to win the Eye Liner Stakes. Photo by Daniel Costello.
The in-form Alma’s Fury is rated 104 and long with Belltone, at 102, are the only two gallopers rated over 100 in the twenty-five entries for the Sunshine Coast feature sprint of the Winter Carnival.
Alma’s Fury was only having his second start for the Tony Gollan stable when he held on to score a narrow win over Masthead in the Listed $175,000 City Of Ipswich Eye Liner Stakes (1350m) at Ipswich on June 14.
Gollan didn’t know what to expect from Alma’s Fury at his first run for the stable in the Group 2 $175,000 Magic Millions QTC Cup (1300m) at Eagle Farm on May 31, but the six year old pleased with a seventh behind Sacred Star.
“I was shooting blind going into the QTC Cup, but I knew he had improved nicely coming into this race,” Gollan said after the Eye Liner Stakes win.
Gollan collected the feature race double at Ipswich with Brave Ali leading all of the way to win the Listed $175,000 Channel 7 Ipswich Cup (2150m) and the premiership leader has a great chance to saddle up another feature race double on Saturday with Brave Ali heading up the nominations for the Listed $175,000 Ross Maclean Fellowship Caloundra Cup (2400m).
The Kelso Wood trained Belltone is dropping dramatically in class after finishing sixteenth to River Lad in the Group 1 $1.36m AAMI Stradbroke Handicap (1400m) at Eagle Farm on June 7.
Belltone won the 2012 Glasshouse Handicap and would only have to come out of the Stradbroke Handicap unscathed to be a chance of collecting the winning trophy for a second time.
Top local trainer Jason McLachlan has nominated Phelan Ready and Facile Tigre.
Seven year old Phelan Ready is struggling to regain any form and was well beaten last start when thirteenth to Alma’s Fury in the Eye Liner Stakes while Facile Tigre was beaten less than two lengths when fifth to Big Money in the Group 3 $175,000 W.J. Healy Stakes (1200m) at Eagle Farm last Saturday.
Playitstraight from the Barry Lockwood stable has been placed at his two starts this preparation including a last start third to Alma’s Fury at Ipswich while the Robert Heathcote trained Saluter ran a much improved race when second to Believe’N’Receive in restricted class at Eagle Farm on the weekend.
