Sunday night’s Yeates Printing Sale Sprint Championship (440m) finalist Perfect Colour has flown under the radar throughout his 51-start career, with Pearcedale trainers Jim and Jane Reynolds adopting a ‘small fish are sweet’ approach with their well-bred sprinter.
Irish-born Jim and Jane, who’s from England, have placed their home-bred son of Fernando Bale and Cooler Colour to perfection, winning 19 of his 51 starts, with 17 minor placings.
But Perfect Colour is certainly up to mixing it with the ‘big guns’, as he demonstrated when running down local superstar Dr. Tucker to qualify fastest for Sale’s $10,000 to-the-winner Sprint Championship.
“I think he can keep up with them!” said Jim Reynolds.
“We’ve been happy to travel around the countryside, looking after him, and he’s won $61,000 in prizemoney doing that!
“He’s won Grade 5 finals at Healesville, Sale, Shepparton and Warragul and he beat Ferdinand Boy in a Mixed 6/7 final at Bendigo early on, running 23.81sec.
“He’s probably only raced for three months of this year, due to a couple of viruses and a chip in his hock.
“He had eight weeks off with the hock and came back and won a FFA at Bendigo in 23.83sec. But then his litter brother, Shared Colour, broke his leg in the next race, so it was chocolates to boiled lollies. But Shared Colour is good and I’m hoping to get him back.”
Perfect Colour had his first taste of Group competition in the recent Healesville Cup heats, where he ran an unlucky fifth to Aston Titan, beaten less than three lengths, before tackling last Sunday’s Sprint Championship qualifiers.
Drawn in Box 7 in the third and final heat, Perfect Colour ($5.90) was able to cross into second place behind Bill McMahon’s hometown hero Dr. Tucker ($1.70), which was first-up after 10 weeks.
In a thrilling finish, Perfect Colour grabbed Dr. Tucker in the final stride in a Best Of Night 24.61sec.
“Perfect Colour had won at Warragul on Tuesday by six lengths in the best time of the night (25.87sec),” Jim said.
“I was a bit worried about only having five days between runs, I normally like a week, but he was able to run down Dr. Tucker in the best time of the night again.
“The four (Zipping Hamish) kept Dr. Tucker off the rail early and he only had two lengths on us. Dr. Tucker was coming back from a spell and that gave us the chance to run him down and Perfect Colour got him right on the line.”
All-conquering three-time country cups winner Ferdinand Boy won the opening heat in 24.73sec, while Dr. Tucker’s kennelmate Sweet Demi upset Omega Dodge and $1.30 favourite Aussie Secret in heat two at $43, running 24.75sec.
Perfect Colour has again drawn wide for Sunday’s final in Box 8, with key rivals Ferdinand Boy and Dr. Tucker to exit Boxes 2 and 4 respectively.
“We’re happy with Box 8,” said Jim.
“Hopefully he can stay out of trouble out there.
WATCH: Perfect Colour (7) claimed a thrilling last stride 24.61sec BON victory over odds-on favourite Dr. Tucker in a Sale Sprint Championship heat.
“He ran in the 5.30s early in his heat and the other good ones were in the 5.20s, so they’re all on his inside and if there’s a bit of a skirmish he’ll avoid it. His middle split is his best.
“He’s chasing his 20th win on Sunday but we’re only concerned about the dog and getting around safely; we’re not worried about the money.
“He’s jumping out of his skin and has come back from the viruses and his hock injury as good as he was previously. He turns three next week (October 4) so he’s at his peak and if he comes through Sunday’s run well we’ll put him in the (G2) Bendigo Cup heats next weekend.”
Perfect Colour was bred and raced by the Just Colour Syndicate, comprising Jane Reynolds and Christine Haigh, who followed a proven formula when deciding to mate Cooler Colour with Fernando Bale.
Cooler Colour comes from the same dam-line as Nicki Fields, who produced 2018 Topgun hero Poke The Bear and dual G1 winner Out Of Range when matched with Fernando Bale.
“Nicki Fields’ great grandmother, Walking Portrait, and Cooler Colour’s great grandmother, Portrait Of Lily, were litter sisters,” Jane explained.
“Both Nicki Fields and Cooler Colour are by Knocka Norris as well.
“Unfortunately there were only two pups in the litter, Perfect Colour and Shared Colour, but we’re very happy with the two we got. Cooler Colour was mated with Whiskey Riot, a son of Fernando Bale, about ten days ago, so fingers crossed we might get more than two this time!”
The Sale Sprint Championship is race 8 on Sunday at 8.20pm.
