Aussie update - May 27

By Adam Hamilton

CHAMPION driver Gary Hall Jr is amazed how hard is getting Chicago Bull fully fit.

The comeback star is lining-up for the seventh successive week at Gloucester Park on Friday, but he’s still not primed.

“He’s not big, but he’s nuggety and it’s so damn hard getting the weight off him,” Hall Jr said. “He’s getting fitter, but this hard racing every week is really what he needs.”

Chicago Bull made it three wins (two seconds and a third) from his six runs back from a spell.

“He really dug deep last week and that was a great sign. He had to pull out plenty to win the way the race was run,” Hall Jr said.

“He might be better than these horses, but when you’ve got the worse the draw and have to do the work around Gloucester Park, it’s just never easy.”

And that’s probably what Chicago Bull will have to do again from gate eight over 2130m with key rivals Ocean Ridge (gate one), Iceenothink (two) and Vultan Tin (seven) drawn inside him.

It’s one of the many highlights on a ripper Gloucester Park card.

The feature is the $100,000 Group 1 2YO Fillies’ Diamond Classic (2130m) where Greg and Skye Bond’s Kiwi-bred Unconditional (gate six) rates up with the best hopes along with Minor Catastrophe (eight) and Always An Angel (12).

Buzz Kiwi import Gran Chico returns from a spell for Mike Reed from the pole in race six.

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ONLY time will tell whether Cash N Flow has gone to another level, but for now he should just keep racking-up the wins at Menangle.

Driver Luke McCarthy always talks about the former Kiwi being “just a bit below the best ones,” meaning stablemates King Of Swing and Alta Orlando.

But with them having breaks, Cash N Flow has made the Menangle mile free-for-alls his own.

The Mach Three gelding is going for his sixth successive mile win at Menangle in the free-for-all on Saturday night.

It’s much the same field he thrashed last week, but another former Kiwi, Hail Christian, will certainly strip fitter for his comeback run when a well-beaten eighth last week.

Trainer Craig Cross has four of the 10 runners, but Cash N Flow, is the $1.18 favourite and should win again despite the outside draw (gate 11).

Cross also holds a commanding hand in Menangle’s feature with four runners in the Group 3 Ladyship Pace (1609m).

Hows The Memory (gate nine, $2.30 favourite) and Molly Kelly (11) look his best hopes, but he also has Love My Sister (two) and Callmequeenbee) engaged.

KerrynAnn Morris has three runners and looks the main threat to Cross’s team with high-class former Kiwi mare Havtime (gate 10).

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STAR trotter McLovin looks a class above his rivals again at  Melton Saturday night.

The Group 1 winner resumed with a narrow, but strong win last week and faces a small but similar field this time.

He should keep winning at least until Victoria’s exits zoned racing and proper metropolitan racing resumes from July 1.