Tasracing

Popular Brighton trainer Adrian Duggan chalked up his 300th training win when five-year-old gelding Wattabout Spangher scored in the Roberts Sprint Lane Pace in Hobart last night.

After opening at $3.20 the pacer eased in the betting to start as the $3.80 favourite and driver Ricky Duggan didn’t let favourite punters down.

Settling one-out and three-back Ricky positioned the gelding three-wide and one back at the bell on the back of Victoria Pass.

Ricky moved Wattabout Spangher into clear racing room out four-wide at the 400m and proved too good late for the fast-finishing Pink Ponder by a head with Raffaello finishing third.

“He had been knocking on the door, had the race run to suit and got the job done,” said trainer Adrian Duggan after the win.

“He has got to be driven sit sprint as he isn’t one that can make his own luck,” added the trainer.

The pacer has drawn the second-row in nine of his last 11 outings including Sunday’s event.

“Poor bugger just can’t get a barrier, he could have drawn one to 10 tonight and he drew 10,” said Adrian about the winner of three races from 23 starts.

The win was the 300th training win for Duggan who had has been training since October 1994.

“I didn’t know that till I saw it on social media, it’s a nice little achievement and good to get it with a nice little horse like him,” he said.

The win completed a weekend double for the duel code trainer who prepared Foreeva to victory at the Launceston thoroughbred meeting on Friday afternoon.

There was a thoroughbred flavour to the win of Mistery Writer in race eight.

Mystery Writer (Mark Yole) scoring in the Rexel North Hobart Pace.

The gelded son of Sportswriter is owned by former jockey Breanna Smith, the partner of leading jockey Craig Newitt who won his sixth Devonport Cup on Wednesday.

Driver Mark Yole drove a confident race on the Ben Yole trained six-year-old gelding to race outside the leader before taking the lead at the 1100 metre mark.

Mystery Writer ($5.50 into $4.40) was able to hold off a late charge by Sign of Oro in what turned out to be a survival of the fittest with the mile rate for the 2090 metres recorded in 2m 3.5s with the last half mile in a slow 62.5s

The win of Mystery Writer completed a training and driving treble for the Ben and Mark Yole combination after scoring with Oneofthelads and Jakes A Joy earlier in the night.

Ben ended up with a training quartet when Somedan scored in the final event.

Star pacer Ryley Major ($1.12) continued on his winning way in the free-for-all where he defeated Izaha by 6.6 metres in a mile rate of 1m 58.3s for 2090 metres.

The win was 24th career win and his eighth win on end.

Watch Ryley Major justify his short quote for his 24th career win: