Mort delighted that British-breds are part of Centenary night
Even with just six races at Dunstall Park on Centenary night, there is room for a British Bred contest which has delighted Liz Mort.
British Bred race on Centenary night is so important
The withdrawal of Harton Whirlwind from Friday's 100 Years On Track centenary meeting at Dunstall Park might have denied the BGBF British Bred Puppy Cup winner of a chance of an encore on a gala night at Wolverhampton Racecourse but Liz Mort, chair of the British Greyhound Breeders Forum, is still delighted British-breds are well catered for.
"It's fantastic we have a British-bred race on Friday and thanks to Arc for supporting us in that respect - and to SIS, as well, who are also supporting the meeting," said Mort.
"Both media rights holders are so important to British breeding and the future - and it's looking bright in terms of the quality of British-bred runners as we saw on Saturday."
Harton Whirlwind won from Romeo Astron in a thriller for the £10,000 Category One prize but has been withdrawn from Friday's planned return to the venue.
However, Mort said the withdrawal, while disappointing, did not diminish what was a super night on Saturday at the track at Wolverhampton Racecourse.
She added: "What an exciting night it was. The final always promised a good race and goodness did they deliver. It was a thrilling final.
"Either Romeo Astron or Harton Whirlwind could have won, until the last few seconds it was Astron, and then Harton Whirlwind swooped.
"Whirlwind was bred by the Drapers' longstanding owner Simon Kneafsey - a butcher by trade, and Whirlwind was certainly fit as the proverbial butcher's dog!
"Owned by the Harton Hopefuls, a syndicate headed by Kneafsey, he was a singleton, just the one pup resulting from the mating between his dam, Kneafsey's Black Racket, and the Drapers' Distant Podge - a very consistent and talented dog who himself won the prestigious Category One Puppy Classic at Nottingham in 2022 - and who looks as though he could be a useful dog at stud.
"He has had two litters. His second litter, also bred by Kneafsey, is out of his Skywalker Amanda, an open-race winning Ballymac Best bitch. They were only whelped in September 25, so we can't really assess them yet. But the line looks pretty good now!"
Goldcash Warrior has also been withdrawn from Saturday night's card at Dunstall Park.
