SHEFFIELD’S director of racing Andrew Mascarenhas is on weather watch ahead of Sunday’s semi-finals of the Time Greyhound Nutrition 3 Steps To Victory.

The unique tri-distance event kicked off with six heats on Sunday but with a host of cancellations across the UK due to the hot weather, including at Owlerton Stadium, Mascarenhas’s first priority is that conditions are right for racing on Sunday – and the forecast is amenable.

“It looks okay, but this hot spell has definitely lasted longer than many led us to believe!” he said. “However, the track has been well maintained and we’re looking to getting back on track this weekend – and Sunday looks special.”

Of last weekend’s heats over 480m, Mascarenhas said: “Goldcash Warrior set the standard in heat five for Nathan Hunt. The trainer is flying after his Trainers Judgement Night win and the greyhound himself is fresh off the back of a crack at the Derby and justified his head-of-the-market billing. 

“Diane Henry’s Grouchos Cossie continued his good recent form in winning what was the hardest of the heats, which was heat six. He led off the second bend and managed to keep rivals at bay.

“Overall it was a good afternoon’s racing with some big-priced runners in the ante-post lists catching the eye and we’re now looking forward to the semi-finals over 500m on Sunday and then, of course, a 660m final the week after.”

As mentioned by Mascarenhas, it was Nathan Hunt’s Goldcash Warrior who was quickest of the six heat winners when making all in a super-slick 27.37sec (normal) in heat five.

Sheffield trainer Lisa Stephenson was at the double with two of her runners, So Its Strate (27.75sec) and Sir Chancealot (27.69sec), landing local victories in heats one and three respectively, while heat two went to Jimmy Fenwick’s Brunssum Bubble in 27.77sec (normal). Fenwick trained last year’s 3 Steps winner Wicky Ned.

Other Sheffield heats were won by Kim Billingham-Hine’s Droopys Poker (27.80sec) in heat four and Diane Henry’s Grouchos Cassie (27.39sec) in heat six, the last-named just two spots off Goldcash Warrior’s best-of-afternoon mark.

 

Trap draw for Sunday’s Time Greyhound Nutrition 3 Steps To Victory semis:

First semi-final: 1 Goldcash Warrior, 2 Cooladerrydancer, 3 Getup Me Izzy, 4 Sir Chancealot, 5 Toddys Tank (m), 6 Farneys Tearaway (m).

Second semi-final: 1 So Its Strate, 2 Eagles Respect, 3 Brunssum Bubble, 4 Droopys Poker (m), 5 Fortnanach Col (m), 6 Bockos Frankel (w).

Third semi-final: 1 Chasing Rachel, 2 Romeo Force, 3 Grouchos Cossie, 4 Gruszka (m), 5 Easy Tizzy (m), 6 Timmys Hunter (w).