In Brief
- Ryley Major lines up again.
- Art Major gelding massive in defeat last start.
- Hillier has a high winning strike rate in Launceston.
The Launceston Pacing Club stages a bumper 10-race card tonight, and Beauty Point trainer-driver Rohan Hillier will be hoping to continue his excellent strike.
Over the past 12-months on the Launceston track, the Hillier stable has had 52 starters for 25 winners and 27 placings.
Stable star Ryley Major headlines Hillier’s five runners at tonight’s meeting, when the gelded son of Art Major lines up in the Discretionary Handicap.
Ryley Major was sent for a spell after winning the Tasmania Cup in mid-March and has finished runner up in his two starts back this campaign.
He was second behind Call Me Hector, who holds the title of Tasmania’s fastest pacer in Launceston on 19 July before finishing second to Full Speed Ahead on 2 August in Hobart.
That event was a 2090 metre standing start where Mark Yole drove a brilliant race on Full Speed Ahead, breaking 30s for every quarter making it impossible for Ryley Major to get into the race from his 30-metre handicap.
Ryley Major’s individual race time was recorded in 2m 35.04s on the Tasracing Calculated Sectionals, and when you allow for his 30-metre handicap on that occasion, it represents a mile rate of 1m 57.7s which obliterated the track record.
Tonight Ryley Major still faces a 30-metre handicap over 2200 metres, but with some more handicapped rivals than last start, and some lowly rated rivals off the front mark, Ryley Major may not have to do all the work to get into the race on his own like he did last time out.
Illegal Immigrant, who won a discretionary two starts ago over the 2200 metre distance, remains on the 20-metre mark tonight and is the main danger to Ryley Major according to the market.
The Troy Hillier trained pacer shares the handicap with past Tasmania Cup win Shelby Bromac and Call Me Hector, who can be hit and miss away from the tapes.
Other handicap runners in the race include Full Speed Ahead who led all the way to win two starts ago before finishing runner up in a claiming race last start and Sea Double Ugrant, who both start off 10 -metres.
The Rohan Hillier stable also prepares the favourite in race six with Lip Reader who was third in Hobart last Sunday after returning from a one start Victorian campaign where he wasn’t disgraced.
While in race four Hillier prepares three runners including the race favourite Giftofjoy who has a hard barrier draw to overcome from barrier seven.
Also engaged in the race are Prosecution Witness who won last start and Monarkmac who won three starts ago and gets into the race with the five-point concession claim for Malcolm Jones.
Tonight’s card commences with a mixed two and three-year-old event at 17:05 with that race to be shown on Sky Racing 2, with the remainder of the card on Sky Racing 1.
Watch Full Speed Ahead lead all the way to defeat Ryley Major on 2 August: