Greyhounds: Blackstone facing steep challenge in Machu Picchu
While the John J Casey Open 575 at Shelbourne may be the most valuable event of the moment, the IGB Open Unraced Stake at Clonmel is surely the most intriguing.
This traditional competition burst into glorious life on Sunday evening with a succession of brilliant performances. Four of the eight heat winners covered the testing 525 yards circuit in 28.64 or quicker to make this one of the fastest sessions of racing ever staged at the famed venue.
Headlines to date have been devoted to Pat Sinnott's Blackstone Gene, who is certainly living up to the billing. He followed up his first round 28.83 with a 28.64 run in the second round and he is clearly a young dog very much on his way to the top.
But he faces a new challenge in next weekend's quarter-finals when he will have to take on a dog that has clocked faster than himself! That dog is Machu Picchu, a son of Top Savings and Noan Flash trained by Peter Cronin for the Ferrybank based Slip Syndicate. A 29.00 first round winner, Machu Picchu went around in 28.62 on Sunday.
But these weren't the fastest winners. The honour of being fastest was claimed by Georgina Goodall's Killough Tale, a son of Just The Best and Catunda Sanna that covered the course in 28.53. But next weekend Killough will be faced by the Wexford dog Iguazu Falls which clocked 28.58 in the second round.
This unraced event has produced some great racing over the years, but the indications are that the class of 2008 could be the best yet. The final will be the highlight of the Festival of Racing on Tuesday, February 5.
Meanwhile, despite failing to sparkle in his second round heat, Si Senor remains favourite to win the John J Casey Open 575 at Shelbourne Park.
