The qualification process for the Darwin Turf Club’s 2022/23 Lightning Wet Season Series concluded on Saturday following the final two heats at Fannie Bay.
Come Australia Day, the $40,000 final (0-70) over 1200m will take place.
Victory in Heat 5 went to Kerry Petrick’s New Roman, ridden by Phillip Crich, who made it back-to-back wins in the Top End after leading his rivals a merry dance over 1300m (0-64).
For the six-year-old gelding it was his fourth win from 17 starts in Darwin, a venue where he has also finished second four times.
After starting his career in SA, where he had two wins and two seconds from nine starts, NT became home when purchased by Petrick at the Magic Millions Tried Horse Sale during the 2021 Darwin Cup Carnival.
Heading to Kununurra in late August and early September after posting two seconds from five starts during the Darwin carnival in July and on August 1, the son of Written Tycoon had one win and two thirds at the remote grassed-track in north-eastern WA.
Having finished 11th over 1100m (0-70) in his first start in the Red Centre on Alice Springs Cup Day (May 1), the gelding returned to Pioneer Park after a spell on December 18 and finished eighth over 1100m (0-58) before saluting at Fannie Bay over 1000m (0-58) on New Year’s Eve and on the weekend.
New Roman started at $18 on December 31, and on Saturday he jumped at $6 and won emphatically from Phil Cole’s $4 favourite Looking For You (Emma Lines) and Tom Logan’s $6.50 hope Freddy The Eagle (Sonja Wiseman).
Lightning Wet Season Series | Darwin R2 | New Roman (1st)
Heat 7 over 1000m (BM54) was the last event on the six-event program and it was also the last chance saloon for the 11 starters to make the final on January 26.
Cole’s Brazenpine (Lines), who debuted in Darwin on New Year’s Day last year after having 24 starts in NSW for three wins, started well and settled nicely behind the leaders before hitting the front halfway down the home straight to seal victory from fast-finishing stablemate Colhoun (Vanessa Arnott).
Once pulling up, Lines dismounted and there was concern Brazenpine may have suffered an injury as the apprentice walked the mare back to scale – it was later confirmed that the saddle had slipped.
For 16-year-old Lines, who claimed 4kg, it was her second career win at her second meeting, after winning on Looking For You for Cole on December 9.
Chris Nash’s $6 runner One For Anna (Stan Tsaikos) basically had to win the race to make the final and jumped to an early lead before tiring in the home straight and relinquishing the lead to the $5.50 favourite Brazenpine.
When Colhoun ($6) arrived on the scene to finish second and qualify for the final along with Brazenpine, One For Anna was relegated to third place and missed out by a point.
Brazenpine had two starts at Fannie Bay last January for two sixths over 1100m (0-64) and 1000m (BM54), and was then spelled before returning in November.
The six-year-old mare was third over 1000m (0-58) and then celebrated her first NT win next start over 1000m (0-58) on December 9.
The daughter of Brazen Beau finished ninth over 1100m (0-64) on December 31, which was Heat 6 of the Wet Season Series and also Heat 1 of the 2022/23 Ladbrokes Summer Sprint Series.
Heat 5 was scheduled for December 17 until the meeting was abandoned when Fannie Bay was deemed unsuitable for racing following a thunderstorm.
It’s the second year of the Wet Season Series, which is a concept devised for mid-grade sprinters who are unlikely to feature prominently during the Darwin Cup Carnival.
The Gary Clarke-trained Blue Odyssey (Barry Huppatz) won the inaugural Wet Season Series Final last year from stablemate Mr Cashman (Jarrod Todd) and the Mark Nyhan-trained Pembroke Castle (Sonja Wiseman).
The 2022/23 final on January 26 will accommodate 12 starters and, in every likelihood, three emergencies.
2023/23 Lightning Wet Season Series points tally
- 7 — War Games (Dick Leech)
- 6 — Brazenpine (Phil Cole), Kirakat (Jason Manning)
- 5 — Beachhaven (Tayarn Halter), Crazy Lad (Cole), New Roman (Kerry Petrick), Noble War (Halter)
- 4 — Hard To Excel (Gary Clarke)
- 3 — Blueant (Tom Logan), Colhoun (Cole), Hattan Man (Halter), Light And Dark (Jason Manning), Looking For You (Cole), Manly Cove (Clarke), Rojo Boom (Mark Nyhan), Yowza (Halter)
Meanwhile, the Chris Pollard-trained $7.50 runner Cudjerie (Dakota-Lee Gillett) won Heat 2 of the Summer Sprint Series over 1200m (0-70) on Saturday after toppling Cole’s stablemates Vunivalu (Lines) and El Magnificence (Wayne Davis), who started respectively at $16 and $26.
The third of eight heats – a $30,000 Average Benchmark Handicap over 1300m – is scheduled for Australia Day and will surely attract a strong field.
2022/23 Ladbrokes Summer Sprint Series points tally
- 11 — Noble War, Cudjerie
- 7 — Virtuous Miss
- 6 — Manly Cove, Vunivalu
- 4 — El Magnificence
- 3 — Kirakat
- 1 — Brazenpine, Brother Bassy, Canton Kid, Early Crow, First Crusade, Global Wonder, Jet Jackson, Swing With Junior, Thunder Peak, Zoumist
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