Kim’s delight at Away Jazz consistency
Monmore Green trainer Kim Billingham has expressed her delight over how ‘consistent’ Away Jazz has become as he looks to win an Open race tonight, writes Joe Edwards.
Jazz has been in top form in the graded ranks as of late for Billingham – winning two A1s on the bounce – and boasts a strong strike rate of 37.04 per cent having won 10 of 27 his career runs.
Tonight sees him return to Open class over four bends to take on a field that includes kennelmate Swift Maria and the Sheffield and Kinsley-based trainer Trevor Coote’s Whitings New Era.
It would be a first Open triumph at Monmore for the two-year-old, and Billingham said: “We’re really pleased with how he’s progressed.
“Jazz has become really consistent around Monmore and has a fantastic strike rate – he’s doing very well.
“He’s got trap two for this one and should have every chance of winning if he traps well, which he has been doing recently.
“He ran brilliantly to win an A1 last weekend and if he repeats that, he’s got every chance. Swift Maria is in the race as well and she’s been doing great, winning a Category Three Open heat the other week.
“She’s a bit wider than she’d like to be in this race, coming in from trap six, but she’s been doing us proud as of late.”
The Ladbrokes.com 480 featuring Jazz and Maria is race nine on tonight’s card at the Wolverhampton track, with two other Open races taking place.
An interesting sprint, the Ladbrokes.com 264 is race seven and has Crossfield Larry (Richie Taberner) looking to get back to winning ways after a second-place finish in last weekend’s Category Three final.
He has been drawn in trap three, though, and kennelmate Coologue Pest could be worth keeping an eye on in trap one.
A 630m stayers’ race also takes place in race five and contains the Nathan Hunt-trained Droopys Flotilla – fresh from a run in the Category One Ladbrokes Kent St Leger final at Crayford.
Billingham also has a greyhound competing away from Monmore tonight in the prestigious Greyhound Derby at Towcester.
The competition got under way on Thursday evening and Beatties Sparkle is one of the nine Monmore-based greyhounds to have been involved in the first-round heats, competing in race four this evening.
Also in Category One action, Monmore trainer Chris Fereday has a chance of landing the £10,000 prize in the Time Greyhound Nutrition 3 Steps to Victory final at Sheffield with Millridge Tanic.
He runs from trap six at 5.01pm tomorrow afternoon after finishing third and second in first-round heats and semi-finals respectively.
