Shipwreck records slick Wentworth Park trial

By Alex Nolan

Queensland Origin hero Shipwreck has turned in a blistering trial at Wentworth Park as trainer Ned Snow prepares to launch a bid on the Nationals and Million Dollar Chase in Sydney.

Shipwreck scorched the Wentworth Park 520 metre circuit in 29.64 seconds in a solo trial on Wednesday.

In the care of Warragai Creek trained Dave Irwin, Shipwreck could possibly be entered at Wentworth Park next Saturday before returning to Queensland for a crack at Nationals Glory.

The 2022 Queensland Sprint and Distance heats will take place at Albion Park on August 4 with $25,000 Finals the following week.

The winner of the respective Finals will be invited to represent Queensland in the $100,000 Group 1 Nationals Finals, which will this year be staged at Wentworth Park.

“I wanted to give him a run at Wenty because I am trying to get him into the Nationals or the Million Dollar Chase,” Snow said.

“If we do make it, it’s a track where you’ve got to have a couple of runs.

“So instead of contesting the Young Guns at Ipswich, we sent him down there.

“He went well for his first look at the track and I believe there were only two that broke 30 seconds on the night.”

Shipwreck will stay with Irwin until at least Monday of next week, when he and Snow will decide on where the star youngster will line up next.

“The next couple of days will tell us more, but time is on our side,” Snow said.

The son of Out Of Range and Aussie Diamond was Queensland’s origin hero last Thursday when he convincingly beat star New South Wales chaser Zipping Kyrgios in the series-deciding Origin Match Race over 520 metres at Albion Park.

Snow said it was exciting to have so many lucrative options with Shipwreck, who has lived up to the trainer’s early expectations.

“I’ve always known he was a good pup because he showed a lot of pace right from the word ‘go’,” he said.

Meanwhile, Queensland’s other Origin hero Days Of Thunder appears to have a mortgage on Saturday night’s Grand Prix over 732 metres at Ipswich.

The Warren Nicholls-trained bitch has drawn box six for her latest assignment after her breathtaking win in the Group 3 Origin Distance over 720 metres at Albion Park last Thursday.

Her main danger appears to be the Rusty Dillon-trained Dundee Ember, which was sent out at $101 and finished seventh in the Origin Distance.

The Grand Prix is the feature event on the 12-race Ipswich card, which also includes four heats of the Ipswich Young Guns over 520 metres. 

The series will feature Shipwreck’s litter-brother Come On Aussie, who will exit box seven in the third heat.

Jemma Daley and Tarquin Neal boast some of the main chances, with Hara’s River (Race 5), Hara’s Pandora (Heat 6) and Hara’s Skye (Race 8) all set to contest heats.

All three are from a litter by Fernando Bale out of Hara’s Honey, which boasts a winning strike-rate of 31.3% and more than $90,000 in prize money.