Kel and Jackie Greenough will be flying to Hawaii on Sunday afternoon as they chase a third consecutive victory in Bendigo’s prestigious $18,055 Jarrod Larkin Concreting Gold Rush Maiden (425m), with fastest qualifier Blue Tick Nelson.
The Greenoughs won the event with She’s Got Wheels, a half-sister to Blue Tick Nelson, in 2021, and then went back-to-back last year with Aston Exceed, while they also won the feature with Mint Power in 2010.
She’s Got Wheels (3 wins from 4 starts) and Aston Exceed (8 from 11), a half-brother to superstar Aston Rupee, demonstrated huge potential in winning the Gold Rush but unfortunately both only had short race careers due to injury.
Blue Tick Nelson, a son of Collision and Zara’s Entity that turns two next Tuesday, was the quickest of last Sunday’s six heat winners, leading all-the-way from box six in a Best Of Day 23.67sec on debut.
WATCH: BLUE TICK NELSON (B6) showed dazzling early speed before prevailing in a thrilling duel with ALPHA ZULU (B5), clocking 23.67sec to set the pace in Bendigo’s Gold Rush Maiden heats.
The half-brother to Group 1 finalists Zac’s Entity and Zara’s Ivan will exit box 3 in Sunday’s $12,100 to-the-winner final (race 2, 12.26pm).
“I don’t have the same opinion of Blue Tick Nelson that I had of the last two winners, but he goes alright,” Kel Greenough said candidly.
“She’s Got Wheels looked very promising. Most of the breed are generally strong and she had the early pace too. I’m not sure how strong this dog (Blue Tick Nelson) is. It’s a bit of a query.
“He’d been trialling okay in box-to-boxes at Sandown and The Meadows, quick early and looking good.
“But when I gave him his first look at Bendigo, he only went average. He won his trial but didn’t run any time and I thought ‘That was a bit ordinary!’.
“This is always a hard race to win, and I thought I might have been wasting my time taking him back for the heats. But it was the first time he’d been on a trip – it’s about three hours to Bendigo – and first time going through kennelling and the other race day processes.
“I think he can win the final. He’s a front-runner, which certainly helps, but he needs to lead.”
The Greenoughs also have the first reserve for the Gold Rush in Tell Me Again, a daughter of Aston Dee Bee and You Tell Me, which has drawn box two in the Consolation (race 1, 12.09pm).
“She has terrific early speed,” Greenough said.
“She’s broken five seconds in trials at Sandown. She pings and goes!”
Bendigo’s bumper Easter Sunday meeting also features the $20,670 Grays Bendigo Stayers Cup (660m) and $6925 AG Tyres And Wheels Easter Cup (500m), headlined by superstar Amron Boy.
“I’ve given Wow She’s Fast a couple of trials and it looks like she’s back to her best.”
Greenough provided an encouraging Wow She’s Fast update, confirming the champion sprinter has arrived in WA in readiness for the inaugural $500,000 The Sandgroper (520m), to be held at Cannington next Friday (April 14).
Wow She’s Fast, which will represent Sportsbet in the slot event, as she has in her back-to-back victories in The Phoenix, is the $4.80 second elect for the Sandgroper, behind Perth Cup winner Elite Machine.
Click HERE for Sportsbet’s market on The Sandgroper
“She flew over to Steve Withers on Tuesday,” Greenough said.
“She’s over the blood issues she had when she went over for the Perth Cup. I’ve given her a couple of trials and it looks like she’s back to her best.
“She went 22.12sec at Warragul on a track that was really ordinary and then I gave her a post-to-post at The Meadows and she ran her 24.50sec, and the next best was 25.24sec. Her run home was enormous.”
