Brown admires American Arma

Three of the State’s best two-year-old fillies American Arma, Rumour Has It and Black Jack Baby — will clash in the final event, the $18,000 Merry Christmas From Gloucester Park Pace at Gloucester Park on Thursday night and ace trainer-reinsman Colin Brown is looking forward to another powerful showing from American Arma.

” I couldn’t be happier with her; she’s still on the improve and should run a mighty race,” he said. “She worked exceptionally well on Monday morning.”

American Arma will start from barrier six in a field of seven and Brown is likely to determine his tactics soon after the mobile barrier sends the field on its way.

American Arma, an early fancy for the WA Oaks next season, has been most impressive in winning at four of her five starts. Her only defeat was when second to a smart colt Sugar Street three starts ago.

At her latest appearance, American Arma had a tough run in the breeze before she overhauled the pacemaker Rumour Has It 60m from the post and went on to win by a half-length from that filly in an exciting event in which the final quarters were run in 28.6sec. and 27.1sec.

Rumour Has It, prepared by Debra Lewis and driven by her husband Chris, relished her frontrunning role at her first outing since last March, and she should be improved significantly by that effort. She will start from the No. 5 barrier on Thursday night.

Adding great interest to the race will be the return to action of breeder-owner-trainer Shane Quadrio’s outstanding filly Black Jack Baby, who will start from the outside barrier in her first race since she led from barrier five and won easily from Lady Bella Anne and Our Shooting Star at Gloucester Park on July 24.   

Black Jack Baby created a tremendous impression early this season when she raced nine times for seven wins and one second placing.

Race driver Chris Voak handled Black Jack Baby in a 2150m Byford trial on November 29 when the filly was the sole back-line runner in a field of six. She sat behind the pacemaker Verano and veered very wide on the turn out of the front straight in the final circuit before forging forward to take the lead 450m from home and then finishing a close second to the fast-finishing Roll Up.

Dylan Quadrio drove Back Jack Baby in a Byford trial three Sundays ago when she was restrained from barrier five in a field of seven and settled in fifth place in an Indian file affair. She assumed the one-out, one-back trail with 1400m to go and went three wide at the 400m before plugging on to finish fourth, 35 metres behind the winner Finvarra.

Ken Casellas