Importer Exporter in top form

WA-bred five-year-old Importer Exporter is one of the State’s most improved harness racing pacers and he has bright prospects of maintaining his grand form by proving the master of his opposition in the $19,000 Homestyle Salad Makers Handicap over 2503m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.

The Artesian gelding is a standing-start expert and a noted frontrunner and Chris Lewis will be anxious that he begins smoothly from barrier two on the front line in a bid to set the pace.

Importer Exporter, bred, part-owned and trained by Chris Winston, has relished the role of pacemaker and standing-start racing, with his past seven starts producing five wins and two seconds.

He was untroubled to lead from barrier two on Tuesday of last week and he gave his rivals virtually no hope when he sprinted over the final 400m in 28sec. He covered the final quarter in 27.2sec. when he won from Our Jericho over 2500m at Bunbury two starts before that.   

However, Importer Exporter will have to be at his best to defy strong opposition from in-form performers Bashful Compton, Pelusiac, Change Gear and Naughty Maravu.

Eight-year-old Bashful Compton, trained at Collie by David Hunter, is a noted frontrunner who is favourably drawn at No. 3 on the front line. He revealed his versatility at his latest appearance, when he started off the 50m mark in a 2503m event at Bunbury last Saturday week. He was 11th at the bell and finished powerfully, out wide, to get up and win from Waltzing With Cullen and Perfect Mach.

The Ross Olivieri-trained Pelusiac also will have many admirers from barrier five on the front line. The Washington VC five-year-old is in excellent form, with his past four starts producing three wins and a second. At his most recent outing, he started off 20m and burst to the front after 950m before going on to win, untouched, from Firth of Forth after final quarters in 27.8sec. and 29.1sec.

Ken Casellas