By Ray Hickson
Trainer Brett Bellamy likes what he sees when he looks at how the Matty Chambers Cup (1315m) is shaping up for in-form sprinter The Wolf so he isn’t going to worry himself with the he has to shoulder at Coffs Harbour on Sunday.
The five-year-old was an easy all the way winner on Murwillumbah Cup Day and that followed a game second on his home track feature sprint.
With Bellamy (pictured) saddling up four of the 11 runners he has a good handle on a lot of the opposition and he feels The Wolf is very well placed.
“Even though he’s got plenty of weight they’ll know he’s there,’’ he said.
“It was run to suit him last time, there wasn’t much speed in the race, and it looks very similar to how the race will be run on Sunday.
“And if it wasn’t for the 14 out of 10 ride on Sammy Conquers All he wins (the Dan Baker Sprint) too.”
The Wolf rises 5kg to 62.5kg for Sunday’s race, where Raymond Spokes rides once again, and Bellamy subscribes to the theory that weights aren’t so significant over shorter courses.
Plus, the gelding is used to it.
“He carries basically that weight every morning of his life so it’s not going to be anything different. That’s not going to worry him,’’ he said.
“Unless someone’s looking at it differently I think he just gets a nice easy lead and can dictate his own terms.
“When he’s allowed to dictate he’s awfully hard to run down.
“Raymond’s done a lot of work with him this time in, he’s taught him to relax a lot better and he’s far more tractable in his races.”
Bellamy said there is one of his three other runners – Change The Date, Royal Hard Hat and Single Touch - that could cause an upset under the right circumstances.
“Change The Date has missed a bit of work, he had a foot abscess,’’ he said.
“Royal Hard Hat I think will be much better suited when he gets over a bit more ground.
“If there was one who could blow them out it’s a horse like Single Touch who should get a nice run behind them with a lot less weight than the 60kg he carried the other day.”
The Coffs Harbour trainer will saddle up a pair in the Coast Hotel Handicap (1615m) looking to snatch an overdue second win with honest gallopers Bianco Nero and Venom Wolf.
The former has won one from 27, the latter one from 21. They ran second and fourth in a similar race at home on September 4.
“I think Bianco Nero deserves a win, she’s been racing really well,’’ he said.
“She probably got it a bit upside down the other day because of the lack of pace in the race. She was still strong to the line.
The Wolf wins at Murwillumbah on August 28
“She deserves a win for her consistency, whether we get it is another thing. You’d be disappointed if she’s not in the pointy end.
“Venom Wolf has been racing well. He can be a lot closer than he’s been from the gate, if he can put himself in a midfield position rather than out the back he has a good chance.”
All the fields, form and replays for Sunday's Coffs Harbour meeting