De Ferran could be owner's best in 20 years

By Alex Nolan

Weighing in at just over 21kg at the time of breaking in, diminutive chaser Pennybacker was unlikely to make it to the race track, according to owner Darren Leeson.

She would go on to win a respectable seven races from 63 outings, with a desire to race that left her owner in awe.

Now, it’s her post-racing career that has put her name back up in lights.

The pint-sized bitch has produced an above average litter that includes likely Ipswich Derby favourite De Ferran, who is aiming for his 10^th straight win for Hall of Fame trainer Tony Zammit.

De Ferran turned two earlier this month and after finishing runner-up on debut at Grafton back in April, he has gone on a run of nine straight victories.

Leeson and Zammit’s relationship dates back to 2000, when the Sydney-based owner purchased two pups by Heart Spark – M’Lady’s Fool and City Of Sydney – trained by Zammit.

More recently, Leeson raced the likes of Frieda Las Vegas and Merchant Navy with Zammit.

“We’ve had some good ones, but De Ferran is potentially the best I’ve had,” Leeson said. 

“Some people laughed when I said I was going to try and breed with Pennybacker.

“You’d never think something so small could breed something like him.  

“You try and breed a good dog but you never expect to breed something so mechanical, he’s turning out to be a bit of a machine.

"Every time he heads to the boxes he does the same thing.”

Combining blistering early toe with late strength in his races to date, De Ferran is likely to start a short-priced commodity in the eighth race at Ipswich on Saturday, a meeting that also features the Futurity and Prostate Cancer Cup Finals.  

Leeson admits De Ferran faces the stiffest test of his career to date from box five on Saturday night, with quality chaser Black Comanche drawn directly to his inside in box four.  

Black Comanche has developed a quirk that has seen him scout wide entering the first turn at both Ipswich and Albion Park.

Despite this, he narrowly claimed his Derby heat in 30.44 seconds by a slim margin.

On the other hand, De Ferran showed his customary early toe and powered away to win his heat by seven lengths in a slick 30.21 seconds. 

Race caller John Brasch says the only threat to De Ferran winning the Derby, worth $10,000 to the winner, is a potential run-in with Black Comanche at the bend.

“We’re going into the race quietly confident but this is his toughest test yet and we have plenty of respect for Black Comanche,” Leeson said.

“But, something I really like about De Ferran is that he seems to lift when he’s challenged to that first bend.

"He really throws himself into the corner.

“We’re just rapt with him, we’re living the dream at the moment.”

Leeson says while happy to let Zammit map out the racing program, he has allowed himself to look forward to potentially contesting some of Australia’s richest races.

“If he keeps going we’ve got the Flame coming up and obviously The Phoenix, so if there are any slot holders reading this story,' he said with his tongue in his cheek. 

“He’ll be 27 months old at that stage so we’ll just wait and see.

“I certainly don’t want to pre-empt anything but he is an exciting dog.”

Meanwhile, Jemma Daley and Tarquin Neal-trained chasers Hara’s River and Hara’s Pandora are likely to head the betting in the Ipswich Futurity Final.

Hara’s River – who jumps from box five – was the fastest qualifier in last week’s heats, clocking a slick 30.21 second effort to down Godges by more than eight lengths.

Hara’s Pandora – drawn outside in box six – wasn’t far off that mark, running 30.27 seconds to down Select Moment by six and three-quarter lengths in her heat.

Select Moment started favourite in the heat but has come up with box eight, from which she is winless in two previous attempts.