Three of Ballarat’s biggest harness racing stables have major hands in Australasian Breeders Crown finals at Melton on Sunday.
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Trainers Emma Stewart, Michael Stanley and Anton Golino each have key chances on the big group 1 day.
Stewart has six starters across four finals, with her strongest presence in the $185,000 three-year-old fillies’ feature – Heavens Trend, Whirily School and Rocknroll Magic.
With 16 wins in 22 starts, Heaven Trend is among the fastest pacers of her age and sex in Australia and has an outstanding record.
She has a career best mile rate of 1:52.4, and has won her latest three starts in 1:55.9, 1:55.8 and 1:53.6.
Heavens Trend has drawn the pole and will have outstanding stablemate Rocknroll Magic on her back.
Rocknroll Magic has 21 wins in 28 starts and is chasing her 12th win in succession after taking her semi-final in 1:56.4
Stewart’s other finalists are Kingofhestars in the $185,000 3yo colts/geldings’ final; Our Little General in the $280,000; 2yo colts/geldings’ final; and Miss Graceland in the $280,000 2yo fillies’ final.
She tops off her presence at the meeting with Ideal For Real and Solarsonic among contenders in a group 2 $50,000 4yo entires/geldings' event, and Lovelist and Delight Me to the fore in the group 2 $50,000 4yo mares' feature.
Petacular spearheads Stanley's assault.
The two-year-old filly is targeting a second group 1 success, having already claimed the Vicbred Super Series final.
Petacular has shown a capacity to be able to work hard in her races and she will need to again after drawing outside the second row.
Burrumbeet-based Stanley also sends around consistent three-year-old gelding Spiritwriter in a bid for group 1 glory, and has Soho Berlin and Soho Tokyo in the 4yo mares' event.
The Ballarat presence is complemented by NZ champion trainer Mark Purdon.
Purdon, who is based at Golino's Cardigan property for the Breeders Crown, could easily go home with multiple winners.
His group 1 runners are Custodian (2yo trotting colts/geldings), Our Waikiki Beach (3yo colts/geldings), My Mackenzie (3yo fillies), Pacing Major (2yo colts/geldings) and Partyon (2yo fillies).
Golino, who specialises in squaregaiters, is taking a shot at three group 1 finals for trotters with 3yo filly Aldebaran Eve, 2yo filly Une Belle Allure and 3yo colt Hudson Bay.
