A mouth-watering matchup between super sprinters Badger’s Beast and Flash Jet continues to gain momentum after the former nearly broke the Grafton track record in Sunday’s heats of the Ladbrokes Thunderbolt.
Fresh off his runner-up finish in the Straight Of Origin, Badger’s Beast was simply sensational in his Grafton rout, thumping the field by 6.25 lengths in the second fastest ever time produced on the circuit.
His 19.57 effort just 0.05 off Rushforth Ally’s track record mark in what was a perfect response to Flash Jet’s masterful performance at Richmond on Wednesday.
“We were confident he'd run a race like that and it was great to see him produce a near record run. Badger's Beast is a tried-and-true greyhound, and his record speaks for itself,” trainer Peter Lagogiane said.
"He's been unplaced three times in his whole career which speaks volumes for the dog. He's over three-years-old and it's a bit like brains vs. brawn at the moment with Flash Jet. Flash Jet is a very fast animal but our guy has been around the traps and has more experience."
"Flash Jet is the young up-and comer, he's the new kid on the block, but the last time they met, Badger's Beast left him standing and I'm sure Johnny Grief would like to atone for that. I love Johnny, he's got a great dog and on-track rivalries between good dogs are healthy for the sport.”
"Hopefully these dogs bring more spectators to Grafton for the semi-finals and finals because people want to see good dogs go around. The competitiveness and rivalry in our sport is rare now so hopefully these two can face off at some stage."
Flash Jet also trialled at Grafton on Sunday for John Grief, with the young gun stopping the clock in 19.73.
The three other Grafton Thunderbolt heats threw up some surprises, with Joker Bonus ($51) and What Hope ($31) saluting at big odds, while Divorce Source also advanced.
At Dubbo on Saturday night, reigning Maitland Cup winner Fusion Mint showed her class to win the only heat at the track for Wes McDonald.
The daughter of Hooked On Scotch x Midnight Romba saluting in 18.23, a length ahead of Fortified, with Aunty Meeka (third) and Silky Choices (fourth) also earning tickets to the semi-finals as well.
Fusion Mint overcoming a serious illness to collect her first win since March 21.
“It’s a good result considering we were nearly talking retirement a few months ago,” McDonald said.
“In her last run at Goulburn, she led the field up but got run down and the time was really slow compared to what she’d normally run there.”
“We knew was something was wrong so we got some blood tests done and it turns out she had a touch of water diabetes.”
“So, we pulled up on here and let her rest. She had a lot of treatment and slowly we got her back to the track. She trials at Dubbo all the time and that heat run time was very close to her normal marks…I think she’s almost back to her best.”
The McDonald family after Fusion Mint claimed the 2024 Maitland Gold Cup final
McDonald heading to Grafton quietly confident the 350m U-turn track will suit his kennel star.
“She’s never raced there but she goes well at Goulburn and she won the Maitland Cup so she seems to handle those sorts of tracks pretty well,” McDonald added.
“We want her drawn down near the fence…I don’t think a crowd worries her but her speed out of the boxes should have them chasing her early.”
And at The Gardens on the same night, Stylish Robbo, Black Bronti, Mark To Market and Smart Comet all qualified for the next stage of the series with the Darryl Thomas-prepared Mark To Market clocking the fastest time of 22.47.
The semi-finals of the Ladbrokes Thunderbolt will be held this Sunday, June 15 at Grafton with the $40,000 final also at Grafton on Saturday, June 21.
