By John Schell
Top country jockey Aaron Bullock will have an enviable book of four rides awaiting when he heads to Narromine on Sunday.
Bullock will partner the David Smith-trained Lockdown Gamble in the feature event of the day, the $40,000 Three Rivers Machinery Case IH Narromine Gold Cup (1600m).
Champion jockey Aaron Bullock has four rides at Narromine on Sunday.Credit: Getty
Lockdown Gamble was the winner of the CDRA Country Championships at Mudgee earlier this year, only to be subsequently disqualified having tested positive to a banned substance.
Bullock was aboard in the Mudgee event and hasn’t been on the galloper in a race since then.
Lockdown Gamble won the Wellington Cup in April before being spelled and then resumed with a victory in Benchmark 82 grade at Dubbo.
He has since tackled city grade and followed a close-up fifth at Warwick Farm with a 15th in the Little Dance at Randwick behind St Lawrence.
TAB Fixed Odds had Lockdown Gamble as a pre-post favourite to win the Narromine Cup, ahead of Sea Of Flames, Vicenzo, and Coonabarabran Cup winner Macleay. Those three gallopers will be ridden respectively by claiming apprentices Shayleigh Ingelse, Ella Drew and Shannen Llewellyn.
Bullock’s other three rides at Narromine will be Shen Gui for trainer Lou Mary in the Qube Agri Memorial Benchmark 58 Handicap (1300m), Open Pearly Gates again for Mary in the Douglas Egan Memorial Benchmark 58 Handicap (1600m) and Gidgee Guy for Kylie Kennedy in the Narromine Hardware Country Boosted Benchmark 66 Handicap (1100m).
Shen Gui is a nine-year-old that has won seven of his 57 starts with a further 13 placings to his name. He finished second at Taree and then third at Coonamble before a last start seventh at Dubbo.
Open Pearly Gates has only had the four starts and Bullock was in the saddle at his debut at Dubbo when he finished a close-up second. Open Pearly Gates then finished second again at Muswellbrook at his second start before breaking his maiden as a short-priced favourite at Dubbo. He finished fourth at Scone in his only other start.
Gidgee Guy is second-up from a spell in his event having resumed with a solid second at Dubbo.
Supplied by Racing NSW
Full form and race replays available at racingnsw.com.au
