When Tiggerlong Tonk arrives at Sandown Park tonight, he’ll see a familiar face in the kennel block.
Tiggerlong Tonk (a son of 2015 TAB Melbourne Cup winner Dyna Double One) and Simon Told Helen will be competing at the same race meeting for the 20th time, and will line up in the same race for the ninth time in their careers.
Australia’s two top ranked sprinters in 2020, the pair were born just days apart in early 2018 and made their debuts within a week of each other 20 months later. They first cross paths on 4/11/19 – the Hume Cup meeting at The Meadows – where Simon Told Helen ran second in the Silver Bullet at start number 8, Tiggerlong Tonk second in a grade 5 at start number 11.
Ten days later they met in a race for the first time – a 2019 TAB Melbourne Cup Prelude – with Simon Told Helen (4th) beating Tiggerlong Tonk (7th) home.
Over the next 12 months they’d race against each other a further seven times with Simon Told Helen winning each time. Three of those races were at group 1 level – Simon Told Helen winning and Tiggerlong Tonk running third each time.
While Simon Told Helen has had on the wood on Tiggerlong Tonk over the course of their careers, ‘Tonk’ is entering the final in career best form having qualified fastest for the final.
And history says that’s a good trajectory to be on.
Cast your mind back to the 2015 TAB Melbourne Cup, and Australia’s two top ranked sprinters were Fernando Bale and Dyna Double One. Both greyhounds were born just days apart and debuted at the same race meeting 21 months later. Entering the Cup, Fernando Bale led 7-0 head to head, including three group 1 finals which he won with Dyna Double One running a place. Dyna Double One qualified fastest TAB Melbourne Cup… could Tiggerlong Tonk emulate his father by breaking a losing streak against a great rival in the world’s greatest greyhound race?
Find out at 8.10pm tonight!
