SIBLINGS Fire On Ice and Fire Legend will be out to add another cup to the mantle of Central Coast trainer Mark Moroney after the pair won two of the three heats of the Bathurst Gold Cup at Kennerson Park on Monday afternoon.
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It was the sister upstaging her brother with Fire On Ice blasting from box seven, easily crossing her rivals with a slick 4.20 seconds first split, then clocking smart sectionals all the way around the track, stopping the clock at 29.61 seconds, the time standard of the three heats.
Jodie Lord's Jax Kade produced a good run to charge home for second and secure a berth in next Friday's $25,000 to the winner final, as did kennelmate Spritely Ebony in finishing third.
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It was a welcome return to form for Fire On Ice who in the middle of last year was considered one of the leading NSW bitches in work. She won a heat, and was just behind the placings in the final of the Group 1 Peter Mosman Opal in July, then clocked a personal best run of 29.64 seconds at Wentworth Park, before winning a heat of the Group 2 Black Top at the Gardens in Newcastle.
But after being injured in the catching pen in the final of the Black Top, Fire On Ice was ruled out for three months and Moroney said she was lucky to be alive after the incident.
"She was in the Black Top final at Newcastle at the Gardens and she slid into the catching pen and knocked herself out. She stopped breathing," he explained.
"Anyhow, it took us a couple of months to get her back but when she came back, she came on season, so we lost another three months. She's had about six months off now."
The Michael Hardman-trained Zulu Warlord won the second heat of the evening, ahead of fellow qualifiers Winlock On Top, Zipping Vernon and Zest to Excel in second, third and fourth respectively.
The box draw was held after the heats, with the siblings set to jump side-by-side, with Fire On Ice drawing box four and Fire Legend - winner of the third and final heat - drawing box five.
Interestingly, of the last 12 winners of the Bathurst Gold Cup, only one, Irinka Luca in 2012 which jumped from box seven, have started wider than box four.
The Bathurst Gold Cup final will be held at Kennerson Park this Friday evening.
- BATHURST GOLD CUP FINAL: 1 Winlock On Top, 2 Spritely Ebony, 3 Zulu Warlond, 4 Fire On Ice, 5 Fire Legend, 6 Jax Kade, 7 Zipping Vernon, 8 Prancing Diva, 9 Aston Sapporo, 10 Zest To Excel
