Sawyers Gully trainer Darryl Thomas is targeting the group 1 Hobart Thousand with rising star La Grand Quality, just eight months after they were lucky to survive a car accident.
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La Grand Quality, a two-and-a-half-year-old dog, broke the Maitland 450m track record on Thursday, winning in 24.56 seconds. The time was inside Pindari Express' mark of 24.59. It followed a similar win at the track two starts ago in 24.68.
The most recent victory was his fifth in just nine career starts. That career was almost over before it began when Thomas crashed on the way to La Grand Quality's race debut in the Vince Curry Memorial Maiden series in Ipswich in February.
"We are lucky to be alive," Thomas said.
"I hit a parked semi-trailer at 110kmph after I fell asleep. It was pretty scary.
"He's been through some adversity and he's come out the other side. He showed a couple of weeks ago what he's about, then yesterday he got to show what he's really all about. And I think there's a bit more in him."
Thomas, a group 1-winning harness racing trainer, was now eyeing more local runs before a shot at the Hobart Thousand series in five weeks.
"He looks like he's heading in the right direction," he said. "He's still got plenty to learn. He's still a reserve grader and you've got to take on the first graders soon, and sometimes that jump up can sort them out, but I've got a feeling he will take them on not too bad.
"There's just a bit of box work to do to get him to start better, and I think he can step up to the next level."
Thomas, who guided filly Rockemama to a Breeders Challenge win in 2016, now focuses on breeding pacers and training dogs. He has about 20 dogs in work.
