Lang/Mahar seek a golden start to training partnership

Talented harness racing horsewoman Sonia Mahar is hoping history will repeat itself at Melton on Saturday night.

Mahar enjoyed success with her first starter as a trainer when Solon saluted at Ballarat 26 years ago and she hopes for the same result when she harnesses up her first starter in a training partnership with Chris Lang.

The Lang/Mahar stable will be represented by Ollivici (Orlando Vici) and last-start Shepparton Trotters Cup winner Bullion Harry (Muscle Hill) in the Group 2 TAB Australasian Trotting Championship.

An accomplished trainer, Mahar has prepared more than 250 winners during her career. This includes multiple Group 1 victories with outstanding filly Self Denial, who won the Breeders Crown (2YO Fillies) and APG finals (2YO Fillies) along with the NSW Oaks.

Mahar, who has been unofficially training with Lang for the past two years, said the master mentor of trotters had broached the topic of a partnership a couple of months ago.

“Even though we do a lot together I brushed it off at first, but Chris was pretty keen to put it in place,” Mahar said.

“I really appreciate it and it is a great honour.”

Mahar concedes it has been somewhat daunting to share the stables with a man who is without peer in the country when it comes to training trotters.

“I have trained one trotter in my life, so I’ve had to adapt to the trotters where we have 15 of them and one pacer,” she said.

Bookmakers rate Ollivici, a $3.20 second elect behind Queen Elida ($1.33 fav), as the best chance of providing Mahar with a dream start to the training partnership.

The son of Orlando Vici ran a slashing third behind stablemate Bullion Harry in last week’s Shepparton Trotters Cup.

“He should be thereabouts with a nice run from the pole as he has a dynamite sprint and he would have smashed the clock at Shepparton,” she said.

Mahar believes Bullion Harry is in career best form.

“He is in a golden patch of form and thriving at the moment,” she said.

“He’s very strong and he just rolls on when he finds the front.”

For complete race entries, click here.

by John Dunne for Harness Racing Victoria