HOVE is preparing itself for a gala weekend ahead with a major double-header on Saturday featuring the finals of the George Curtis & Ballyregan Bob Memorial and Coral Olympic.

The all-open race card has delighted Hove racing manager Rob Abrey who is looking forward to another high-class night’s action at the seaside venue with a brace of £10,000-to-the-winners finals the highlight of a four-final card and a host of supporting opens as the track continues a hugely busy period.

“Christmas is always a busy time for greyhound tracks and we’re no different thankfully,” said Abrey. “It’s been good to announce this week our Boxing Day meeting is sold out and, of course, Saturday will be another big night here.

“It’s a great way to end our open-race year and these double headers are definitely popular – and you’d have to say there’s not a lot between each of the finals in terms of overall quality – and Mark’s (Wallis) dogs are rightly favourite.

“We know the best laid plans don’t always come true but both Proper Heiress and Mongys Wild have done nothing wrong in their events so far.

“Mongys Wild was again fastest in the semis of the George Curtis & Ballyregan Bob Memorial and he really does have something about him.

“I know there were comparisons with Ballyregan Bob himself when he was on that winning sequence earlier this year, but Bob had far more early pace and just drew away from the opposition. He was pretty relentless off the front – and the best.

“Mongys Wild is a completely different dog. He winds up a challenge and is so, so powerful, probably just as much a top-class marathon performer as a six-bend star – although it takes a good one to beat him over six bends, too! He’s just a brilliant greyhound and an absolute joy to watch.

“He’s yet to be beaten here, of course, and now looks to add this title to the (Premier Greyhound Racing) Regency he won here in August. He’s odds-on to do so, but still needs to do it, especially with the defending champion Garfiney Blaze against him. Mark (Wallis) has a strong hand here too!

“It’s great to see two Yarmouth trainers represented in Craig Morris’s Cartoonist and Pamela Cross’s Ballymac Nova, while well done to Belinda (Green) and Richard (Rees) for flying the flag for us here at Hove by getting Buddys Bullet and Deadly Disco through.”

For the record, Buddys Bullet landed the first George Curtis & Ballyregan Bob Memorial semi-final in all-the-way fashion to lead home last year’s running-on winner Garfiney Blaze by three-quarters of a length in 44.53sec (normal), with Deadly Disco crossing the line in third and securing his place in Saturday’s Category One final.

Hot favourite Mongys Wild then reeled in Cartoonist to win the second semi-final, leading before the penultimate bend before racing away by six and a quarter lengths to score from the keeping-on Ballymac Nova and the latter’s trackmate in 44.16sec for the 740m trip.

Trap draw for Saturday’s final: https://imminent-otter.files.svdcdn.com/production/assets/results/Brighton-Hove/form-guides/Saturday-13-12-25-advance-form.pdf