KING TURBO landed a fourth Category One success of 2018 when producing arguably one of the best performances of his illustrious career in Thursday’s £7,500 Coral Greyhound Olympic Final at Hove.

In going one better than last year, the Liz McNair-trained runner has forced his way into Greyhound of the Year contention given victories for the KSS Syndicate-owned in Towcester and Monmore’s Gold Cups plus Central Park’s Kent Derby.

Olympic glory at the Sussex venue has capped another fantastic year for the November 2015 son of Leamaneigh Turbo and Wee Tiger Tots, who also reached the final of the Sunderland Classic as well as the semis of the Scottish and British Bred Derbys.

“He’s got four major titles this year and, had things gone his way at Sunderland and Sheffield, it could have been even better,” said trainer’s husband Rab. “Even at Shawfield, he was quick enough but just didn’t handle the short run to the bend.”

Beaten in the heats at Hove, King Turbo roared back to ante-post favouritism with a fastest semi-final clocking and, as McNair added at the time, the three-year-old was back to his best after a muscle strain following his Kent Derby success in October.

“He had a month off after Central Park, so was still not that sharp going into Sheffield but still tried his best to make the final. He took a fall in the semis, but only because he was trying to force his way through. He’s got a great will to win.”

King Turbo (Trap 5) holds off Seamus Cahill’s Queenies Rainbow (Trap 6)

Breaking smartly in Thursday’s final at Hove, a 4.27sec split paved the way for a first-bend lead and King Turbo was soon clear down the back-straight on his way to exorcising the ghost of 12 months previously when caught by Bruisers Bullet in the Olympic final.

“That was one of the races of the year, and there were no excuses,” added McNair. “Bruisers Bullet is top class and was flying at the time. We moved off down the back, which let him through, and you don’t give a dog of that class that sort of advantage.”

However, this time around there was to be another scare as the Seamus Cahill-trained Queenies Rainbow produced a stunning burst of pace to close a five-length gap down to the back to get on terms with King Turbo off the last bend.

“He had a battle on his hands, for sure,” McNair continued, “in fact, I thought we might be mugged by Seamus’s dog. I’m too old to get frights like that – especially when he’d done everything right in the race!

“He broke well, showed that great pace he has and took control. Thankfully he stayed strong in front and held him and we can celebrate another win – and another for this dog who has proved a champion for us.

“It’s a great way to end the year, and once again we thank Brendan (Keogh, KSS Syndicate) and the lads for putting their faith in us. We’ve had a successful year with a number of trophies and some exciting pups winning races, too.”

For the record, King Turbo crossed the line a head clear of Queenies Rainbow to clock 29.90sec (-10) for the 515m trip with Toast Of London (Matt Dartnall) back in third. The winner will now have a short rest before being prepared for the Trainers’ Championship.

“Turbo and King Elvis are running well and Elvis has had three weeks off already. Myself and Liz will have a break over the new year to see the grandkids and then we’re back to work and go again – and we’ll not shirk the challenge.

“Everyone knows Turbo made a mistake early in his career. But we’ve been down that road already – we’ve faced every top-class greyhound and competition there is. He’s not been kept to one-offs – we’ve faced everything head-on and will do so again.

“The Trainers Championship meeting is a target for us, and we’ll try to make that interesting – and as for Greyhound of the Year, four Cat Ones for Turbo has made it interesting! That’s some record – this dog is a star and has enjoyed a fantastic year.”