Extraordinary Open begins farewell tour at Topgun

Saturday night Group 1 Topgun meadows It will be the start of superstar sprinter Explicit’s farewell tour of racing.

With the likelihood of him retiring at the end of the year being so slim, it’s conceivable that racing fans will only see Bernardo’s incredibly talented son in action four more times.

“All plans are that he can only race Topgun four more times, Melbourne Cup series and then The Phoenix” champion trainer jason thompson in question.

“As excited as we are for the next six weeks and the big races, we also can’t wait to get him racing at the Stud, the interest in him is huge.”

With four Topgun titles on his mantelpiece, the first with No Intention in 2001 and the last with Transponder last year, Thompson knows what it takes to annex the so-called ‘Cox Plate of Greyhound racing’.

And there’s no shortage of numbers for this year’s edition of the Pearcedale mentor; with the participation of the sport’s No. 1 sprinters Explicit (box 8), Excavation (box 2) and Flying Zulu (box 3), the latter of whom consolidate their points with wins in the respective Group 1 Adelaide and Brisbane Cups.

Superstar sprinter Explicit won the Group 1 Temlee at The Meadows in February

Thompson’s Topgun shares rose even higher on Wednesday. Australian Cup hero Tim Zoo starts from the seventh box after Morton scratches.

“I couldn’t be happier with the drawing style of all of them except Tim Zoo, not the seven wonders,” Thompson said.

“The preparations have been excellent but clearly he is our number one chance.

“His record at The Meadows is almost flawless and he is unbeaten from box eight there too.

“From the second box, Goose will get the chance to find the rail and Flying Zulu will be really pleased to be back at The Meadows and has made good progress.

“He ran 4.97 early at The Meadows and if he can do that he will make his presence felt.

“As for Tim Zoo, the draw isn’t very good but he’s doing really well and he’s won the Australian Cup on the track and as we’ve seen Knight’s Choice “Anything can happen in the race on Tuesday.”

Explicit, who won last start at Sandown at 28.97, is ahead of Excavation at $3.80, with betting at $2.70 for the $150,000 winning show.

NSW star Zipping Megatron, drawn box one and Flying Zulu next at $6.50.

Thompson hopes Explicit will go on to have a great career in the next six weeks, and while he’s confident, he says it won’t define him.

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With four group wins already under way, Explicit has won 24 out of 33 starts, crowning victory in the Group 1 Temlee earlier this year.

“He is already a group 1 champion, has broken records and run sensational times at every metropolitan circuit he has competed in,” Thompson said.

“I have gone on record and said this overall: He is the best dog I have ever trained and I am not backing down from that statement.

“If he could add another group 1 on Saturday night, he’d make it even bigger. He’s the one they all need to beat.”

With $442,500 in stakes already invested, a perfect finish to 2024 in Topgun ($150,000), Melbourne Cup ($500,000) and The Phoenix ($1 million) could see Explicit’s prize money exceed $2 million.