Gordon Sciberras has won hundreds of races as an owner but was especially thrilled to see his old warrior Foreign Capital take out Saturday night's fourth and fifth grade at Wentworth Park.
It was the Vic Sultana-trained dog's 10th Wentworth Park victory and an emotional Sciberras said later: "Foreign Capital really deserved that win.
"This dog has had so many setbacks, he looked like being a champion early in his career but he had a problem and was sidelined from July to November, 2024.
"Then Vic got him going and he hurt himself again, this time being out of action between December, 2024 and June, 2025.''
Foreign Capital, who becomes eligible for Masters class races next month, came from midfield on the back straight to score a powerful finishing win in 29.65 on Saturday.
The Mark Gatt-trained Wyndra All Heart posted fastest time of Saturday's meeting, a scorching 29.37, but his kennelmate Ritza Ringer, who was runner-up, recorded an equally stunning performance.
Wyndra All Heart led all the way from box one to score by just over a length in easily his best WP time, after reeling off sizzling early splits of 5.39 and 13.68.
He ran home in 11.63 and Gatt later figured that Ritza Ringer, the runner-up, must have run home in under 11.30, extraordinary figures.
Ritza Ringer bungled the start from box eight and was a long last going from the first turn to the back straight, before surging into fourth position approaching the home turn.
Before the race Gatt had rated Wyndra All Heart his better chance, declaring he was confident the dog would make full use of box one.
Wyndra All Heart was sent out at $3.50 while Ritza Ringer was a warm $2.30 chance and favourite backers were probably unlucky not to collect.
Mark Gatt has won seven Wentworth Park races each with both Wyndra All Heart and Ritza Ringer and landed a winning double later on Saturday night when his National Derby winner Ritza Tears chalked up his ninth win at the track.
No wonder after Sammy Ethan, another Gatt-trained dog chased home Zipping Hopkins in a 29.62 Masters race on Saturday, the Thirlmere mentor said: "When Wentworth Park closes nobody will miss the place more than me.''
Sammy Ethan has had an astonishing 87 races at the Glebe circuit for 24 wins and 37 placings, earning over $181,000
Brett Smith, a guard on Sydney Trains who prepares greyhounds as a hobby, landed a 520m fifth grade on Saturday with Towering Earl, who had been a Nowra Puppy Classic finalist on April 26.
Smith has always considered Towering Luke, a finalist in a Million Dollar Chase Maiden last year, as his best greyhound, but Towering Earl now almost certainly has that ranking.
Towering Earl led throughout in 29.86 on Saturday, taking his record to a consistent 11 wins from 19 starts.
Smith, who bought his first greyhound in 2004, was forced to become a trainer.
"I had intended just to be an owner but when the first dog I purchased broke in so slowly, nobody wanted to train him so I had to take on the job myself,'' he recalled.
Zipping Ariel, who won last week's group 3 Ladies Bracelet as an $8.50 chance, proved that win was no fluke with a blistering 29.42 all-the-way win at $6 in Saturday's top grade race.
The Courtney Barnes-trained bitch began brilliantly from box one and comfortably held off the fast finishing Pax Bostonia to score her 10th win in 33 Wentworth Park appearances.
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