Olivieri poised for 30th Group 1 Success

Thirty-eight years ago Ross Olivieri left Perth and moved to Sydney, taking with him three-year-old pacer Tebaldi, a filly he prepared and drove to victory in the 1982 New South Wales Oaks at Harold Park to achieve his first Group 1 success.

Tebaldi had given Olivieri his final winner in Western Australia (at York in August 1981), and only his sixth victory in a fledging career as a trainer before heading east.

Olivieri then notched two more Group 1 successes as a trainer when Gliding Princess, driven by Wayne Hancock, won the NSW Derby in March 1983 and the NSW Oaks in May that year when driven by Greg Tsolakis.

Olivieri returned to Western Australia in 1990 after enjoying considerable success as a trainer in New South Wales and New Zealand and he has headed the WA trainers’ premiership table eight times.

He has also notched another 26 Group 1 victories, including a WA Pacing Cup (Saab), Fremantle Cups with Speedy Cheval and John Albert, an Australian Pacing Championship with Ima Spicey Lombo, the WA Derby with Saab, Talladega, Argent Treasure and Crombie, the Golden Nugget with Saab and Dasher VC, the Pearl with Lombo Laredo and Argent Treasure, and the Golden Slipper with Harry Gunn, Saab, Talladega and Western Cullen.

One of the few Group 1 feature events in WA that has eluded Olivieri is the WA Oaks and he should right that wrong by winning the $120,000 TABtouch WA Oaks over 2536m at Gloucester Park on Friday night with his outstanding filly Double Expresso.

Double Expresso, who has given Olivieri his two most recent Group 1 victories (in the Westbred Classic and the Sales Classic for two-year-old fillies last season), will be handled by champion reinsman Chris Lewis, who has combined with Olivieri in 23 of his 29 Group 1 triumphs.

Double Expresso, purchased as a yearling for $22,000, has won at 12 of her 16 starts for earnings of $282,884 and is favourably drawn at barrier three on the front line. Lewis is expected to send Double Expresso forward at the start and the filly appeals as the likely pacemaker and should prove too strong for her 11 rivals.

Lewis has won the WA Oaks four times as a driver behind Jamcaro (1988), Showtime Franco (1996), Sheer Royalty (2009) and Sensational Gabby (2012).

Double Expresso warmed up for this week’s assignment in grand fashion, setting the pace and sprinting over the final 800m in 55.8sec. in winning, unextended, from smart geldings Gardys Legacy and Valentines Brook at a 1.56.2 rate over 2130m last Friday week.

The New Zealand-bred filly My Sweet Deal, trained in Collie by her owner David Hunter, looms as a possible danger to Double Expresso, particularly after drawing the No. 2 barrier. She was an all-the-way winner over 2130m at a 1.58.8 rate three starts ago, but her major strength has always been as a brilliant sit-sprinter.

My Sweet Deal, whose 19 starts have produced eight wins, eight seconds, one third, one fourth and a tenth, will be handled by Stuart McDonald, who has driven her in all of her starts. She rattled home from seventh at the bell when an excellent second to the pacemaker Fifty Five Reborn.

Fifty Five Reborn, trained and driven by Colin Brown, shows good promise and has won at five of her 12 starts. But she is awkwardly drawn at barrier six on Friday night, with Olivieri’s second string Run For Mercy (Chris Voak), similarly facing a tough task at barrier seven.

Byford trainer Peter Anderson has timed Star Fromthepalace’s Oaks preparation perfectly and the filly to be driven by Aldo Cortopassi should be prominent throughout after drawing the inside of the back line. Star Fromthepalace notched her fifth win with a commanding all-the-way victory at a 1.56.6 rate over 2130m last Friday night. Cortopassi trained and drove the speedy Artemis Belle to an easy victory in the 2011 WA Oaks.

Henley Brook trainer Mike Reed has an excellent record in the Oaks, having been successful with Pharosan in 2000, Sheer Royalty (2009), Libertybelle Midfrew (2014) and Maczaffair (2017). He will be pinning his faith on the talented New Zealand-bred filly Tiffany Rose, a winner at six of her 18 starts.

Tiffany Rose, to be driven by Shannon Suvaljko from barrier four, was an all-the-way winner over 2130m on Tuesday of last week. Suvaljko drove Libertybelle Midfrew and Maczaffair to their very easy Oaks victories when both fillies started at 10/1 on and were untroubled to lead throughout.

Leading reinsman Ryan Warwick has chosen to drive outsider Intheskyrocket in preference to the Ian Foley-trained Misstiano, who will start out wide at barrier eight with Gary Hall Jnr in the sulky. Hall has won the Oaks with Miss Holmes (2004) and Major Reality (2015).

 

Ken Casellas