Fedex brings it home

By Marc McGowan
CHAMPION Pearcedale greyhound trainer Jason Thompson started 2009 as he finished last year with another Group 1 victory courtesy of Fedex in Saturday night’s Silver Chief at The Meadows.
The win followed Thompson’s career-best 10 Group 1 triumphs in 2008 and was his fourth success in the race.
He also collected the Silver Chief spoils with Ben’s Fury (2005), Awesome Assassin (1996) and Light of Fire (1994).
Hot favourite Fedex ($1.60) stormed to the front from box one before holding off fast-finishing outsider Austin Bale ($55.60) by the barest of margins.
The two-year-old brindle dog has won 14 of his 25 starts, including his last four.
Thompson was thrilled with Fedex’s first Group 1 victory.
“Any win is a good win. He didn’t get there by a big margin, but he got there and it was very pleasing,” he said.
“I thought he’d always hang on and it got quite close on the line, but, as I said, he had a margin and that’s all he needed.
“I rate all races the same. I’m always in there to try and win – whether it’s a group race or a maiden race.”
Thompson credited his success last year to a largely injury-free run in his kennel.
“I think we’ve won seven or eight Group 1s (in a year) before, but not 10,” he said.
“I’ve always had handy dogs, but injuries can determine what sort of year you have and we had a pretty good run with injuries last year and that helped enormously.
“I’ve been very lucky along the way and I’m just happy if we can win a race … if we only win one (Group 1) this year it won’t be through a lack of trying.”
Thompson’s star three-year-old chaser El Galo, which finished the year a clear leader in the Australian Greyhound Racing Association rankings, also emerged victorious on the same card.
The one blight on Thompson’s banner season was the stewards’ discovery of banned substance N-butyl-hyoscine in El Galo’s urine sample following his win in October’s Group 1 Topgun.
Greyhound Racing Victoria (GRV) officials revealed last month that El Galo’s B sample reaffirmed the presence of the drug.
Thompson is adamant he has done nothing wrong and the hearing for the case will be held at GRV headquarters on 20 January.
“I know I’m innocent. I used it (N-butyl-hyoscine) in the correct manner as I was advised to use the product,” he said.
“Unfortunately it wasn’t a long enough timeframe (for the drug to have left El Galo’s system).
“This is not just a one-off that has happened to me by chance. Quite a few others in the horse racing industry have fallen victim to something similar to myself.
“It goes to a hearing stage now and it will probably very much be guided by what happens with the people in the horse racing industry.”
Cranbourne trainer Darren McDonald also tasted success recently, with his two-year-old sprinter Vintage Octane winning the Group 2 Sale Cup on Boxing Day.