Monmore set up for busy night
Two strong-looking finals will take place while two more competitions begin as Monmore Green hosts several Open races tonight.
Monmore has its first set of Opens since the Premier Greyhound Racing Puppy Derby came to a head on March 18th, with the Ladbrokes.com 480 and Ladbrokes.com 630 Maiden events both getting underway.
A standalone Ladbrokes.com 630 Open race is also on the card, but it is the two graded finals which arguably appear to be the night’s most intriguing affairs.
After well-contested heats last weekend, the Joyce Lloyd Memorial Final should set pulses racing while the Dave Gregory Memorial Final is full of dogs who have wins under their belts.
Jake Pain, Monmore assistant racing manager, said: “We’re looking forward to having Open racing back here after a couple of weeks off, and the night should get off to a fine start with Heat One of the Ladbrokes.com 480.
“The Nathan Hunt-trained Droopys Google looks to be the one to beat, although Antigua Woofwoof – also trained by Hunt – has a rich history at Monmore.
“The Ladbokes.com 630, race two on the night, should also be an interesting one. Patrick Curtin’s Olga is a classy performer, but he has a tough draw as Opelka - trained by Nottingham’s Alec Stone - is a good stayer and ran a decent trial time of 38.41 during the week.
“Slightly later on, Carol Weatherall’s Team News should be the favourite In Heat Three of the Ladbrokes.com 480, and it would be a surprise not to see him advance to next week’s final.
“The highlight of the night, though, should be the Joyce Lloyd Memorial Final, where Hunt’s Wicky Curly will look to claim a fifth win on the bounce at Monmore.
“He is in unknown territory coming out of Trap Two, though, and that may favour Aero Arran – Richie Taberner’s ever-improving pup. It should all make for a top night’s racing.”
It comes after Monmore paid tribute to former kennelhand Dave Millington with a memorial race last weekend.
The A6 event was won by Cross Keys Maria, and Jo Nock – who works as a kennelhand to Chris Fereday and was a close friend of Millington – said: “Dave was a dog man through and through and very well-liked.
“Me and Dave were joined at the hip, so it was only right we had all his kennel friends and staff at the track in his honour.”
