The mighty fall to Feelgood

By David Nagel
JUST under 12 months after his first Victorian Group One win, former North American Mr Feelgood did it again at Cranbourne on Saturday night.
Aided by a brilliant tactical steer by Luke McCarthy, the evergreen son of Grinfromeartoear overcame reigning race champion and red figure favourite Im Themightyquinn to taste success in the $100,000 Decron Cranbourne Pacing Cup.
The stunning success takes his tally of Australasian Group One wins to six ahead of a tilt at back-to-back Victoria Cup crowns at Tabcorp Park next week, and confirms his standing as one of three great pacers currently campaigning down under.
Awkwardly drawn in gate eight for the Vic Cup carnival’s 2555-metre night one feature, McCarthy had Mr Feelgood off the pegs and challenging for the top through a fast lead time which also saw Im Themightyquinn work harder than expected to find the leading role.
Stoked up to take control, the nine-year-old superstar soon turned Cranbourne’s marquee race into a true staying test – reeling off first half fractions of 30.1 and 29.7 seconds as Lisagain worked to his wheel from the rear.
Dynamic when breaking his rivals’ hearts through a penultimate split of 28.4, Mr Feelgood still appeared a sitting shot for $1.40 favourite Im Themightyquinn strapped hard to his back on entering the lane.
Despite peeling off his back in plenty of time however, the superstar Sandgroper could not shake the effort of his early burn and battled home late to go down by two metres on the line.
Pacific Playgirl grew wings through a 29.8 second final fraction to fly home for third and outline just how strong next week’s $425,000 Vic Cup field will be with the possibility she’ll fail to secure a run.
The final mile rate of 1:58.8 was more than a second outside Im Themightyquinn’s track record but still outstanding given the wet conditions of the night.
Cranbourne Harness Racing Club chief executive David Scott was effusive in his praise of the former North American nine-year-old.
“Mr Feelgood is a very welcome addition to the Cranbourne Cup Honour Roll,” Scott said. “For a regional club to have it’s last two cup winners have combined earnings of over $5 million is pretty impressive.”
In more good news for the sport’s ageing warriors, lightly raced 10-year-old Will Trapper created history winning the Aldebaran Park Bill Collins Trotters Mile, also at Group One level.
An Inter Dominion silver medallist at Moonee Valley, John Noonan’s veteran son of Keystone Salute has been injury riddled for much of his career since, but made it two wins in our richest square gaiting sprint, after claiming his first Bill Collins in 2008.
Emerging from near enough to last, he nabbed brave leader I Didnt Do It in the shadows off the post in a solid mile rate of 2:00.4.
Aleppo Sunrise finished third and was the luckless runner for the second time in three weeks while Sundons Gift battled on courageously for fourth after punching the breeze throughout.
Will Trapper will shoot for an unlikely Group One double in the $125,000 SEW-Eurodrive Australian Trotting Grand Prix on Vic Cup night at Tabcorp Park.