Typhoon Sammy may have been the ‘slowest’ of the six Taylor’s Palace Hotel Horsham Cup heat winners, but the perfectly drawn Group 2 Traralgon Cup hero is set to start favourite in Friday night’s $47,000 to-the-winner Group 2 final.

After being beaten as favourite in a heat of the Group 1 Australian Cup, Typhoon Sammy – trained by champion three-time Horsham Cup winner Jason Thompson – made his Horsham debut in last Friday’s heats where he dug deep in a gutsy 27.22sec victory, boosting his imposing strike rate to 25 from 38.

Click HERE  for TAB’s latest Horsham Cup Final market

“I think the caller was spot on – it was a brave win,” said Thompson, whose three Horsham Cup wins came courtesy of Monsters Inc (2003), Marungi Blaze (2006) and Winsome History (2007).

“His racing pattern is to ping to the front, get a big break and hold on, so to miss the start and have to work hard to get to the front and still win, I was rapt with his run.

“He wasn’t really travelling at any stage of the race and I thought we’re in trouble here.

“But when you’ve won the amount of races he has, he knows how to win, and he showed that, albeit, they didn’t run time. But he’s better than that and the main thing is that he made the final.”

“We really wanted to draw ‘the pink’ and there’ll be no excuses (for Typhoon Sammy).”

– JASON THOMPSON

After exiting Box 1 in his narrow heat victory, Typhoon Sammy moves to ‘the pink’ for the final, with TAB currently listing the son of 2018 Horsham Cup runner-up Aston Dee Bee the $2.70 favourite.

“I couldn’t believe they originally put him up at $4.20, which didn’t last long,” Thompson said.

“We really wanted to draw ‘the pink’ and there’ll be no excuses this week. I wouldn’t expect him to miss the start again.”

KEY TIMES

7:08pm First race
8:28pm Wimmera Cup Final (Race 5 – first Quaddie leg)
8:48pm Horsham Cup Consolation (Race 6)
9:08pm Jan Wilson Memorial Final (Race 7)
9:28pm G2 Horsham Cup Final (Race 8)
10:09pm Last race (Race 10)

“Around a half-circle, I definitely want Box 8 with him. He loves it out there.

“Generally, Box 8 brings him out and gives him that room to move. There’s nothing coming down on him and he just needs that 10 or 20 metres and then he explodes.

“He’s drawn where he wants to be and I’m confident he’ll run really well.”

A second country cup triumph for Typhoon Sammy would provide a timely boost for his owners, the Dart family from the Northern Rivers of New South Wales, who have once again borne the brunt of the devastating floods currently afflicting the region.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
– Watch every race live and free on Sky Racing.
– Live coverage with Troy Harley, Brooke Ennis and Corey Smith on The Watchdog app and at watchdog.grv.org.au.
– Behind the scenes Twitter coverage with ‘@WatchDogRacing’.
– Regular updates with Trent Langskaill on RSN Racing and Sport (927 AM).

Jeff Britton’s fastest heat winner Boston Garden (Box 5) is the $4.20 second elect, with Andrea Dailly’s slick heat winners Zara’s Ivan (Box 6) and Americano Miss (Box 7), a litter sister to Boston Garden, both at $6.

Crackerjack Keg (Box 3), the outsider of the field at $26, trained at Wonwondah by Patricia Smith, is striving to create history as the first locally-trained Cup winner.

1984 winner Propellant was owned locally by Jenni Coustley and Stan Nicholson and trained by Graeme Bate.

Here’s a rundown of the contenders:

Group 2 HORSHAM CUP FINAL (485m)
Horsham, Friday 9:28pm
First prize $47,000

1 OLD NEWS
Trainer: Brooke Ennis, Lara VIC
Breeding: November 2019 Fernando Bale x Pandaken
Record: Won 6 from 14
Horsham PB: 27.14 seconds
TAB fixed odds: $8

Comment: Lightly-raced talent, lining up in first Group event. Has been ultra-consistent, missing a place only once (fourth) in his 14 starts. Wasn’t suited by Box 1 in heat but navigated a path to the centre of the track in strong-finishing win. His racing pattern dictates he will need luck from the rails alley again, this time against much tougher opposition.

2 INVICTUS RISING     SCRATCHED

3 CRACKERJACK KEG
Trainer: Patricia Smith, Wonwondah VIC
Breeding: February 2019 Cutting Edge x Maximum Lil
Record: Won 11 from 35
Horsham PB: 27.05 seconds
TAB fixed odds: $26

Comment: Local hopeful that advanced after running second to fastest qualifier Boston Garden. Experience on his home track is a plus but this class will provide a huge test and he’ll go around at big odds.

4 FERNANDO MICK
Trainer: David Geall, Lara VIC
Breeding: February 2019 Fernando Bale x Noaki Moth
Record: Won 15 from 58
Horsham PB: 27.31 seconds
TAB fixed odds: $12

Comment: Shown he’s capable of landing a big race, running a close second in the Group 1 Maturity Classic final, while also qualifying for the Group 2 Cranbourne Cup final. Held ground throughout when second in heat to smart winner Americano Miss and has finished top-two in all three starts at Horsham. Each-way prospects.

5 BOSTON GARDEN
Trainer: Jeff Britton, Anakie VIC
Breeding: November 2019 High Earner x Phantom Mime
Record: Won 8 from 26
Horsham PB: 26.90 seconds
TAB fixed odds: $4.20

Comment: Group 1 National Derby finalist that’s been hindered by average box manners throughout his career. Showed what he’s capable of with fastest heat performance, upsetting track record holder Soda Titan. The start again holds the key to his chances, especially from the awkward draw, but he’s won two-from-three at Horsham and is one of the key players.

6 ZARA’S IVAN
Trainer: Andrea Dailly, Anakie VIC
Breeding: February 2020 Barcia Bale x Zara’s Entity
Record: Won 7 from 18
Horsham PB: 26.92 seconds
TAB fixed odds: $6

Comment: Promising youngster that started favourite in the Group 1 National Derby final in January. Bounced back in impressive style after falling in Australian Cup heat with commanding heat victory in smart time at Horsham debut. Should be better for last Friday’s outing and is a winning chance with luck from a tough alley.

7 AMERICANO MISS
Trainer: Andrea Dailly, Anakie VIC
Breeding: November 2019 High Earner x Phantom Mime
Record: Won 9 from 28
Horsham PB: 26.93 seconds
TAB fixed odds: $6

Comment: Littermate to Boston Garden that’s gone to a new level, winning four of her past five, with the defeat coming in an Australian Cup heat. Came out running from Box 2 in dominant all-the-way heat victory and while she’ll find it more difficult drawn wide against greater depth, must be respected in her current form.

8 TYPHOON SAMMY
Trainer: Jason Thompson, Pearcedale VIC
Breeding: January 2019 Aston Dee Bee x Zabaleta
Record: Won 25 from 38
Horsham PB: 27.22 seconds
TAB fixed odds: $2.70

Comment: Star speedster with imposing strike rate. Chasing second country cup crown after winning Group 2 Traralgon Cup final in January, and also ran third in Group 2 Bendigo Cup final, exiting Box 7 on both occasions. Dug deep in gutsy heat win after uncharacteristically missing the start, albeit the slowest of the six qualifiers, but trainer says he’s ideally drawn and sure to take a power of beating.

Reserves
9 LOTS OF CHATTER (Box 2)
Trainer: Graeme Jose, Catani VIC
Breeding: January 2018 Fernando Bale x Alotta Luck
Record: Won 34 from 98
Horsham PB: No wins
TAB fixed odds: $8

Comment: Gains a start following scratching of Invictus Rising and is a live chance. Ultra-consistent veteran, runner-up in Group 2 Bendigo and Gosford Cup finals, and deserving of a feature trophy. Led when runner-up in heat and no surprise to see him prominent for a long way.

10 LALA IVORY     SCRATCHED
Trainer: Andrea Dailly, Anakie VIC
Breeding: May 2019 Aussie Infrared x Lala Shim
Record: Won 10 from 55
Horsham PB: No wins
TAB fixed odds: $34

Comment: Another from the Dailly kennel that came to Horsham after contesting Australian Cup heats. Narrowly beaten in heat by likely favourite Typhoon Sammy and could figure at odds if a starter.

HORSHAM CUP HEAT WINNERS
Friday 25 February
(fastest to slowest)

26.90sec Boston Garden ?
26.92sec Zara’s Ivan
26.93sec Americano Miss
27.14sec Old News
27.21sec Invictus Rising
27.22sec Typhoon Sammy

RECENT HORSHAM CUP WINNERS

2012 Dyna Tron (Andrea Dailly, Anakie VIC)
2013 Peter Rocket (Keith Hellmuth, Pearcedale VIC)
2014 Crump (Troy Iwanyk, West Melbourne VIC)
2015 Margins (Brooke Ennis, Lara VIC)
2016 Zambora Brockie (Anthony Azzopardi, Rowsley VIC)
2017 *** Race Not Held ***
2018 Jimmy Newob (Kelvyn Greenough, Pearcedale VIC)
2019 Orson Allen (Correy Grenfell, Mount Wallace VIC)
2020 Tiggerlong Tonk (Correy Grenfell, Mount Wallace VIC)
2021 Shima Shine (Andrea Dailly, Anakie VIC) ?

RELATED
HOW TO SPEND $20 ON THE HORSHAM CUP FINAL
DAILY MAIL: ‘SAMMY’ SET TO SHINE AT HORSHAM
THE GREAT WHITE HOPE
BOSTON GARDEN’S HORSHAM SLAM DUNK