Champion harness racing trainer Gary Hall is out to right a wrong.
He is hell bent on breaking through for his first victory in the Memorial Day Stakes, which will be run over the sprint journey for the first time at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Hall prepares four of the 12 runners in the $22,500 feature, with lightly-raced five-year-old John Of Arc his best chance.
The son of Courage Under Fire drawn awkwardly in barrier six. Halls other runners are Zacs Nuggett from barrier three, Notabadexcuse, which will begin from 10 and Benjamin Banneker, which has the outside of the second line to contend with.
Successful at 12 of his 19 starts, John Of Arc finished fifth, two lengths behind the winner Pacific Warrior last week.
John of Arc was restrained from barrier six and settled towards the tail of the field before Gary Hall junior made his move at the bell. After racing three and four-wide, John of Arc battled up the home straight.
In what is a rarity for Hall, who has won nearly every major race in Western Australia, the Memorial Day Stakes keeps proving elusive.
Hall’s best efforts in the event are five seconds – Zakara (1991), Bengeeman (2003), Patches (2006), Dartmoor (2009) and Whos Mistake (2013) and two thirds — Talk To Me Courage (2010) and Sanjaya (2013).
The Memorial Day Stakes was inaugurated in 1959 when Ken Ford drove Halt to victory over Noon Quest and Steel Master.
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KEN CASELLAS