Queensland sprinter Running Express has arrived in Victoria and today had his first hit out at Sandown Park in preparation for the Launching Pad.
He was a finalist in the time honoured Vince Curry Memorial at Ipswich in February and has joined the popular Gerry O’Keeffe kennel for his attack on the $420,000 series.
“He arrived not Sunday just gone but the one prior and has settled in beautifully,” said O’Keeffe.
His first look at Sandown Park was a good one, he ran box-to-box and set splits of 5.21 and 18.98 in what was the first trial of the day.
“I’m happy with that. He’s still a very young dog but so far doing a lot of things right.”
O’Keeffe planned to race Running Express this Sunday however greyhounds nominated in Victoria must be 18 months or older. Luckily he becomes eligible on March 16 – the day Launching Pad nominations close.
He’s won two of four career starts for primary trainer and owner Cole Sherwood. He will be one of countless exciting youngsters targeting the series.
“There’s a lot of prestige about the Launching Pad and as expected there’s already signs of how deep in quality the series is going to be – the likes of Aston Rupee and Silver Lake just to name a couple.”
Aston Rupee is arguably the number one contender for the series after his ludicrous win at The Meadows on Saturday. He is expected to have one more race before contesting Launching Pad heats on Thursday March 18 – click here to read what trainer Glenn Rounds had to say.
The Launching Pad final will be run on Thursday April 1 – click here for series details.
Running Express cools down after his trial
