LEGENDARY breeder Paul Wheeler has been the major beneficiary of the Melbourne Cup’s historic rise in status to being the world’s richest greyhound race.
Wheeler has bred and raced four Melbourne Cup winners – Kantarn Bale (1999), Dyna Tron (2011), Dyna Villa (2014) and Dyna Double One (2015) – with three of his victories coming in the last six years when the victor’s purse has skyrocketed to unprecedented levels.
When GRV Hall of Fame inductee Kantarn Bale gave Wheeler his first Melbourne Cup trophy at just his eighth start, the least experienced sprinter to reign supreme in the great race, he earned $100,000.
First place had doubled to $200,000 when Dyna Tron was successful, while back-to-back winners Dyna Villa and Dyna Double One both received a mind-boggling $420,000 for 29.36 and 29.17 seconds’ work respectively.
“The Melbourne Cup is the richest race in the world now, so it’s not only a thrill to win it, but it also provides a huge financial boost,” Paul Wheeler said.
“Personally, two of our wins stand out. The first bloke, Kantarn Bale, just seemed to know where the finish line was and he would throw himself at the line, and the next one would be when Dyna Double One ran down Fernando Bale.”
The Melbourne Cup prizemoney is reflected by Wheeler’s Team Dailly-trained 2015 Cup quinella of Dyna Double One and Fernando Bale being the only Australian greyhounds to have broken the $1million prizemoney barrier, although a third Wheeler-bred superstar could join the exclusive club at The Meadows this Saturday night.
Victory in the $75,000 to-the-winner Group 2 Topgun Stayers will see Fanta Bale, which has banked $964,835, emulate Fernando Bale ($1,299,370) and Dyna Double One ($1,160,316).
“I’ve been involved in greyhound racing for half a century and I didn’t think winning a million dollars with a greyhound would ever be a possibility,” Wheeler said.
“It’s funny to be talking about winning a million dollars because I can recall when Winifred Bale became the first greyhound to earn more than $100,000 in prizemoney and then Kylie Bale was the first greyhound to win a $100,000 race in the Dapto Classic.
“We bred the first litter to win more than a million dollars, which was the Collision – Gold Rush Bale litter that included Dyna Tron. Then Fernando Bale became the first greyhound to break the million dollar mark.
“I believe the important thing with Fernando Bale, Dyna Double One and Fanta Bale is that all three greyhounds carry an outcross.
“I’ve been ridiculed and boohooed by a lot of people for bringing in semen from overseas, which has been made possible through the advent of frozen semen, which was pioneered by Richard Canole in the United States.”
Wheeler wouldn’t be drawn on the possibility, albeit unlikely, of Fanta Bale, which boasts Group 1 victories in sprint (Australian Cup), middle and staying events, dropping back in distance to tackle the Melbourne Cup, deferring all decisions on her racing program to trainer Robert Britton.
Numerical strength has also been a key element in Wheeler’s Melbourne Cup fortune, amazingly supplying seven of the eight finalists in 2011, and half the field in 2015, although he concedes that dominance is likely to be a thing of the past having scaled back his breeding levels in more recent times.
While Wheeler is adamant outcrossing has led to his phenomenal recent success on the racetrack, he believes it’s also translated into an unexpected boost in the potency of his sire-line, with Barcia Bale and newcomer Fernando Bale at the forefront.
“In the past our line has been predominantly a female line and I never thought I would see the day when our sires would be as dominant as they are now,” Wheeler said.
“In my opinion, there will come a time in the future when our sires will be represented somewhere in the pedigree of every Australian greyhound.
“Fernando Bale is going great guns with his first crop of pups. I have a bitch called Lamia Bale, which won just short of $400,000 in prizemoney and I’m going to put her to Fernando Bale too.
“I sent two of Fernando’s sons, Allen Ablett and Avenger Bale, over to New Zealand and they’re going terrific. They’re both unbeaten over there and it’s a possibility they could come back to Australia for feature races.
“I sent them to New Zealand because of the finish-on lure. I’m a huge believer in the finish-on lure and I think it’s a must for Australia in the current environment. We’re the only major greyhound racing country that doesn’t give our greyhounds a reward for their effort after their races.
“Dyna Double One hasn’t had many pups get to the track yet, but there’s been some very good reports from the breakers and we’ve broken some good ones in. Barcia Bale is also doing particularly well, while our other sires that have made an impact include Bekim Bale, Turanza Bale, Dyna Lachlan and Allen Deed.”
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