Zafonic puts Fear into other EA Derby racers in second round heats
The second round of the Betfair 64th EA Derby was run yesterday at Yarmouth. The round consisted of four heats. The top three of each earned spots in this Saturday’s semi-finals.
Heat one
Heat one saw 5-6 race favourite, Ten Large Down, finish in second place behind Lainedans Flyer. Flyer took the lead on the first bend, and was able to fend off a challenging Down in the final stretch. Ocean Star, a 10-1 longshot, also qualified for the semi-finals, finishing in third, 4¼ lengths ahead of Swift Ribena. A long way back in fifth was Canary Delight, and expected qualifier, Eye Onthe Flash, finished dead last, over 26 lengths behind Flyer.
Heat two
Lenson Bolt and Guinness Time, 2-1 joint favourites, didn’t disappoint, finishing first and second respectively. Bolt got off to a great start from the traps and beat Time by 2¼ lengths.
Jackdaw Summer pushed inside to the rails to edge out Beaufort Bound by a shoulder for third place. Bound was forced wide and couldn’t beat Summer from there. Also eliminated were Glenske Bond in fifth, and Newton Diamond in sixth.
Heat three
Fear Zafonic was the 2-7 race favourite in the third heat, and has been the favourite for the EA Derby since it started, so it was no surprise to see him win over Roo Come On by 4½ lengths. The win was Zafonic’s fifth in a row, and there is no reason to think that he won’t stretch his winning streak to the weekend.
Also to qualify for the semi-final was Reluctant, who took third place. Sparklee Bernie took fourth spot ahead of kennelmate Zaheer, and in last place was Bridge Flash.
Heat four
The final heat saw, 11-8 race favourite, Jordansoilutions, finish in fifth place. Jordansoilutions was one of few Derby competitors that posed a real threat to Zafonic. Surprising everyone was 10-1 longshot, Union Jak Jakson, winning the heat by 2 lengths over Yahoo Jamie. The final qualifier, in third place, was Chicago Prince. Society King, a 16-1 longshot, took fourth place by a shoulder over Jordansoilutions, and Love Knight came in sixth.
Next week’s draws are as follows:
Semi-final 1: 1 Lainedans Flyer, 2 Union Jak Jakson, 3 Lenson Bolt, 4 Roo Come On, 5 Ten Large Down, 6 Ocean Star (w).
Semi-final 2: 1 Guinness Time, 2 Chicago Prince, 3 Jackdaw Summer, 4 Fear Zafonic, 5 Yahoo Jamie (m), 6 Reluctant (m).