Black Heart Bart remains the clear cut favourite after drawing the rails in the Group 1 $1m Magic Millions-Kingston Town Classic (1800m) at Ascot in Perth on Saturday.
Black Heart Bart, above, has drawn the the rails in the 2017 Kingston Town Classic at Ascot. Photo by Ultimate Racing Photos.
Brad Rawiller will be able to give the Darren Weir trained Black Heart Bart the run of the race from barrier one in the fifteen horse Kingston Town Classic field.
Ladbrokes.com.au have Black Heart Bart at the top of the market order at $3.30 ahead of the James Cummings trained It’s Somewhat at $5 and the locally trained filly Perfect Jewel at $6.
It’s Somewhat was out of luck at the barrier draw, coming up with gate eleven while the Grant and Alana Williams trained Perfect Jewel didn’t fare much better with nine.
Trainer Darren Weir admitted that the stable had to nurse Black Heart Bart through the Melbourne Spring Carnival where he was winless, but is confident that the five times Group 1 winner will step out on Saturday in top shape.
“I think the horse is going great,” Weir told RSN927.
“The horse is a very sound, tough horse but he was just having a bit of feet issues and we just were having of trouble keeping them right.
“It was just concussion, really. We just weren’t able to get him into that heavier sand where there’s absolutely no concussion on their feet, really.
“After his last run in the spring he went straight up to Maldon and had five or six weeks up there in the deep sand and he just got sounder and sounder each week. By the time he came over here (WA) he we was trotting out fantastic.
“So I think he’s back going pretty good again.”
The Blackfriars seven year old was placed twice at Group 1 level from four Spring Carnival starts with a second to Vega Magic in the Group 1 $1m New Zealand Bloodstock Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on September 2 followed by a third to stablemate Humidor in the Group 1 $750,000 Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) at Flemington on September 16.
Black Heart Bart missed a place at his next start when fifth to Bonneval in the Group 1 $750,000 Hyland Race Colours Underwood Stakes (1800m) at Caulfield on October 1 and then Weir sent him up to his farm at Maldon to test out the new sand track that had been recently constructed.
Black Heart Bart will meet Great Shot 5.5kg better in the Kingston Town Classic after failing by a nose to run down the Perth galloper when second in the Group 1 $1m James Boag’s Premium Railway Stakes (1600m) at Ascot on November 25.
Chris Waller’s three Kingston Town Classic runners came up with a mixed bag at the barrier draw with Life Less Ordinary at five and Tom Melbourne with seven doing alright while All Our Roads will jump from one from the outside at gate fourteen while the Adam Durrant trained Silverstream has drawn the extreme outside barrier.
Early betting for the 2017 Kingston Town Classic at Ladbrokes.com.au: $3.30 Black Heart Bart, $5 It’s Somewhat, $6 Perfect Jewel, $8 Tom Melbourne, $10 Achernar’s Star, $11 Life Less Ordinary, $21 All Our Roads, Great Shot, Pounamu, $26 Material Man, Money Maher, $41 Royal Star, $51 Silverstream, Gatting, $101 Cosmic Storm.
Final field and barrier draw for 2017 Kingston Town Classic (1800m)
| # | Last 10 | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1x75x32352 | BLACK HEART BART | Darren Weir | Brad Rawiller | 1 | 59kg |
| 2 | 3x1119x033 | IT’S SOMEWHAT (USA) | James Cummings | Brenton Avdulla | 11 | 59kg |
| 3 | 2186×52321 | GREAT SHOT | Rhys Radford | Craig Staples | 12 | 59kg |
| 4 | 05×2222623 | TOM MELBOURNE (IRE) | Chris Waller | Damien Oliver | 7 | 59kg |
| 5 | 11x4963x16 | POUNAMU | Alan Mathews | Patrick Carbery | 8 | 59kg |
| 6 | x31114x145 | MATERIAL MAN | Justin Warwick | Mitchell Pateman | 6 | 59kg |
| 7 | 26216×3549 | ALL OUR ROADS (NZ) | Chris Waller | Michael Walker | 14 | 59kg |
| 8 | x122x25392 | LIFE LESS ORDINARY (IRE) | Chris Waller | Douglas Whyte | 5 | 59kg |
| 9 | 82413×6517 | GATTING | Darren Mcauliffe | Lee Newman | 13 | 58.5kg |
| 10 | 90122×2110 | SILVERSTREAM | Adam Durrant | Brad Parnham | 15 | 57kg |
| 11 | 3x1511x460 | COSMIC STORM | Grant & Alana Williams | Glenn Smith | 3 | 57kg |
| 12 | 11612×1522 | ROYAL STAR | Grant & Alana Williams | Jarrad Noske | 10 | 56.5kg |
| 13 | 1x122x7122 | ACHERNAR STAR | Simon A Miller | Chris Parnham | 4 | 52kg |
| 14 | x223x11617 | MONEY MAHER | Daniel & Ben Pearce | Joseph Azzopardi | 2 | 52kg |
| 15 | 1×1141 | PERFECT JEWEL | Grant & Alana Williams | William Pike | 9 | 50kg |