"I think he’s a very, very special greyhound" - Fenwick on Wicky Ned

What's Nott to like about Ned?

Jimmy Fenwick could hardly have been prouder of Wicky Ned following his brilliant victory in the ARC Select Stakes at Nottingham.

Wicky Ned put a stellar field to the sword at Nottingham on Monday evening, as he flew into an early lead and ran riot to beat Derby hero Droopys Plunge by three lengths in an excellent 29.22 (+60).

His demolition of a red-hot field was no mean feat, and his trainer couldn’t help but wax lyrical about his kennel star.

“It’s terrific to win another Category One race with him,” said Fenwick.

“I know it’s a one-off race but it’s nice to win these races because they are the best that are in training at the moment. It’s brilliant really.

“I think he’s a very, very special greyhound. He’s got a lot of ability and a lot of raw pace. On his day, he’s probably as good as anything in training in England and Ireland, it’s just that sometimes luck doesn’t go his way with trap draws or whatever it may be. It’s one of those things.

“For any racing greyhound to get six Category One wins in their career, it’s one hell of a feat. Let’s hope we can keep him sound and in good health.”

 Wicky Ned (T4) leads up in the Select Stakes Photo: © Steve Nash

What's next for Ned?

With four months of the year left, there are still plenty of big prizes to be won and Fenwick has mapped out his ideal route for his charge if everything goes to plan.

The trainer continued: “There are so many other races that we could go for.

“There’s one just round the corner at Nottingham, which is the Birmingham Cup, and at Sheffield there’s the Steel City Cup, which we won last year and we’d really like to defend our title there. It’s a track that he absolutely loves.

“And then, we’d probably be looking at going back to Nottingham for the Eclipse. We might go the route that we took at the end of last year, taking in Sheffield, Nottingham and ending up at Newcastle for the last major competition of the year – the All England Cup, which we won last year as well.

“There’s so much more we can look forward to with Ned. If we can just keep him sound and healthy - keep him doing what he’s doing.”

 Jimmy Fenwick. Photo: © Steve Nash

Greyhound of the Year title

When asked if it was too early to be dreaming of a second consecutive Greyhound of the Year title for his kennel star, Fenwick admitted it is hard not to think about his dog retaining his crown.

He added: “We’d love to, I think it’s going to be in your mind.

“He might have to win two of the four competitions I mentioned to get him in the mix but there’s nothing to say he can’t do it. Let’s hope luck is on his side and our plan comes to fruition.

“We love the dog and love training him. He’s one of these dogs that has the will to win and he doesn’t let you down.”