Our harness racing coverage is back this Friday night with Trent Orwin's preview from Gloucester Park and Melton. Check out his best bets of the card below!
Gloucester Park Harness Tips
RACE 2
Chok Chai looks extremely hard to beat on paper and has come up $1.40 which is no surprise. Prepared by Gary Hall Snr, Chok Chai was runner up behind Lord Willoughby last start. This is easier but there isn’t any value to be had backing him. His stablemate Campora is the way that I want to go instead on an each-way basis at huge odds.
Finishing a close-up sixth behind Lord Willoughby and Chok Chai, Campora should be able to settle handy once again and if Soho Wonder doesn’t hand up the lead, then Campora has better claims. The place price in particular is appealing at around the $10 mark and this underrated pacer has one of the best closing sectionals in the race. If he gets any luck he can be there at the finish.
RACE 5
Trainer Matthew Scott is having a purple patch of form at the moment and Always Arjay would be the icing on the cake if he was victorious in the Group 2 RWWA Cup (2130m). Herrick Roosevelt is pretty smart and returns for the first time since December 2017. If fitness becomes a query late then Always Arjay can make him pay with recent FFA efforts very good.
Three starts ago Always Arjay was a standing-start winner coming off a 20m handicap to defeat Carrera Mach and The Bucket List. He was then runner up behind Vultan Tin and held up last time behind that same horse. Looks a good each-way price.
RACE 6
Wesley should get across Stroganoff at the start and from there he will prove extremely hard to run down over the 1730m. A last-start 1:55.2 winner over Debt Free Charlie, Wesley was fourth in a heat of the Nights of Thunder after racing outside of the leader in 1:52.4 three starts ago. It was a tremendous performance and he may have felt the run a bit because he ran seventh when leading in the final.
Chiaroscuro and Mr Mojito are the main dangers in the race. Chiaroscuro will have options from barrier 10 while Mr Mojito has barrier nine which is very hard to win from over this short distance – see Bettor Aim in the Nights of Thunder Final, although things did go wrong for him with a flat tyre.
RACE 9
The penultimate race on the program is a beauty with several winning chances. I am keen to oppose Liberty Rose at the $2.20 quote despite having strong claims. Whoswhointhezoo looks the leader in the race and he should run a big race from that position. He has been placed at two of his past three starts, with both coming when racing three back on the pegs.
Looking at the sectionals, Whoswhointhezoo has the best last halves in the race and if he can get a cheap quarter somewhere, he should take some catching.
Melton Harness Tips
RACE 3
Holy Basil was very impressive on debut pacing a 1:54.2 mile rate at Yarra Valley over the 1650m. He will have to overcome the second row draw at Melton but his class will see him prove hard to beat.
Enchanted Stride gets the barrier draw advantage with barrier four looking ideal because trainer-driver David Miles can search for the lead. Two starts ago she ran third in the Group 1 Breeders Crown 2YO Fillies Final (2240m) won by Our Princess Tiffany in 1:55.3.
At her return to racing, Enchanted Stride raced behind the leader and proved too good in 1:57.7 for the 1755m at Echuca. Expect her to run a big race on Friday night.
