Where's Fernando will be set for the $40,000 to the winner Ladbrokes Thunderbolt at Grafton following his sizzling 20.25 win over 365m at Nowra on Thursday.
There could hardly have been a more apt success, as Where's Fernando led throughout to win the Happy Birthday Jeffory Alaban Stakes, named in honour of his trainer.
Alaban, who was a butcher on the south coast for 50 years, retired to concentrate on his hobby of training greyhounds at the end of 2022, celebrated his 75th birthday on Thursday.
Where's Fernando's win took his tally to 25 victories and 13 placings from 52 starts, for $60,000 prizemoney.
"Fortunately Where's Fernando has been very sound, he has had just one injury in his entire career and while he has turned three he is going better than ever,'' Alaban said.
"He was bred by his owners, local blokes Gary and Steve Hush, and hopefully I can get him to Grafton, for the Thunderbolt, a race I tried to win with a fast bitch I trained recently called Perfect Dawn.
"I was getting her ready for the Thunderbolt in 2023 when she came in season, then, the following year, she hurt her toe just before the series began.
"Perfect Dawn, who won 12 of 24 races, was a flying machine but she was injury prone, so was retired and now has an 11 month old litter by Fernando Bale.''
Perfect Dawn
While Perfect Dawn's fastest Nowra 365m time was 20.53, Where's Fernando posted 20.25 on Thursday, not far outside the track record of 20.09.
Where's Fernando is royally bred, being a son of Where's Ella, a Wentworth Park winner who was a daughter of Twist Me Over, a half sister to Garry Edwards' former champion Double Twist, who was joint NSW Greyhound of the Year in 2013 with Jagger Swagger.
Heats of the Ladbrokes Thunderbolt will be held at Bulli, Goulburn, Dubbo, Maitland, Gosford, Taree, Richmond and Grafton from May 26 to June 7, with semi-finals at Grafton on June 14 and the 350m final there on June 20.
Peter Lagogiane's brilliant speedster Badger's Beast set the Thunderbolt race record of 19.58 when he bolted away with last year's final.
