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  • Friday, 05 Mar, 2021,
  • by Gerard Guthrie

Jim Zarr Dashian set for Shine

Jamie Ennis admits he’ll be happy to run second to record-breaking heat winner Shima Shine in Saturday night’s Group 2 CHS Group Horsham Cup (485m), the opening leg of the inaugural Western Festival of Racing.

Ennis and wife Brooke have Jim Zarr Dashian (Box 2) making his first group race final appearance in the Cup, where he’s a $10 chance, with Andrea Dailly’s superstar Shima Shine (Box 7) dominating the market at $1.40.

“Shima Shine is obviously a class dog, he broke the record last week and is clear top pick,” said Ennis, who won the 2015 Horsham Cup with Margins.

After being edged out in a Melbourne Cup heat, Jim Zarr Dashian was sent for a spell and was having his third run back and debut at Horsham last Friday when gunning down Aussie Secret and Faithy Bale to win his Cup heat in 27.11sec.

“His first two runs back were okay,” Ennis offered.

WATCH: Jim Zarr Dashian steams home to claim a G2 Horsham Cup heat in a slick 27.11sec.

“There’s definitely improvement in him and come Saturday, he shouldn’t be far off.”

“He was a bit rung rusty, not having raced for a while, but I thought his heat run was a lot better, even though it was a field of six.

“He lost two or three lengths on the first corner and if you take that into account he’s probably gone second quickest to Shima Shine.

“There’s definitely improvement in him and come Saturday, he shouldn’t be far off.”

Ennis believes Jim Zarr Dashian is ideally drawn in two for the Cup final but concedes that so too is Shima Shine, which won his heat in a new course record time of 26.79sec.

“It’s probably a perfect draw for us in that the dog in ‘three’ (Aussie Secret) uses the track and has good pace,” Ennis said.

“That’s probably the key to the race for Jim Zarr Dashian. If the ‘three’ uses the track early that should give ‘Jim’ and Jax Bale (Box 1) a good run to the first mark.

“Shima Shine is also drawn beautifully in ‘seven’ with the ‘six’ (Aston Cade) and ‘eight’ (Fabriola Zad) being slow early.

“I’d be rapt to run second to Shima Shine and with the improvement in Jim Zarr Dashian I think that’s realistic. If something was to go wrong with Shima Shine then he’s probably a realistic winning chance.”

Jim Zarr Dashian has always shown group race ability, running a breathtaking 29.02sec at Sandown Park at just his fifth start and breaking the Bendigo 425m record at start 14 last April.

“He does have good ability but has a couple of issues in that he plays up badly in the kennels on race night and he lacks early pace,” Ennis explained.

“That’s the difference when it comes to group races.

“With the (Western Festival of Racing) Cup series, after Horsham there’s Ballarat, Geelong and Warrnambool Cups leading into a (Group 1) Harrison-Dawson.

“The Golden Easter Egg is also coming up but I think I’ve been to Wenty enough times to know you need early speed there. Jim Zarr Dashian lacks the first split speed to win an Easter Egg and we’ve got these other good races in our own backyard.”

The Horsham Cup is the first leg of greyhound racing’s inaugural ‘Western Festival of Racing’, which incorporates four country cups and over $700,000 in prize money.

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Gerard GuthrieGerard Guthrie

Gerard Guthrie

One of Australia’s leading greyhound racing journalists since 2000 with the Greyhound Recorder and now with Greyhound Racing Victoria. Part-owner 2013 Group 1 Paws Of Thunder winner Sheikha. (The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of GRV)

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