What: Premier Greyhound Racing (PGR) Oaks
When: Saturday, October 26, 2024
Where: Perry Barr Greyhound Stadium, Nottingham, England
Oddsmakers very much like Druids Say Go as the dog to beat in this year’s Premier Greyhound Racing (PGR) Oaks, and it’s easy to see why. The speedy grehyound hasn’t seen the backside of another dog at the finish line since late July
Druids Say Go has continued his winning ways in the first two legs of the PGR Oaks. Winning twice, he’s extended his run of first-place finishes to 10 successive races since returning to the track in August from a 25-day layoff.
Druids Say Go is set as the +150 favorite to win the PGA Oaks. Other top contenders in this betting market include Queen Joni (+200) and Icemans Girl (+800).
PGR Oaks Odds | |||
---|---|---|---|
Druids Say Go | +150 | +150 | +150 |
Queen Joni | +200 | +200 | +200 |
Icemans Girl | +800 | +800 | +800 |
Distant Cara | +1000 | +1000 | +1000 |
Droopys Eunice | +1400 | +1400 | +1400 |
Queen Dusty | +1600 | +1600 | +1600 |
Coppice Ella | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
Front Alice | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
Chamberlain Kate | +5000 | +5000 | +5000 |
Ballyhealy Star | +6600 | +6600 | +6600 |
Catunda Layla | +6600 | +6600 | +6600 |
Devilgat Suzi | +8000 | +8000 | +8000 |
Among the 12 remaining contenders, no other dog is assigned odds shorter than +1000.
The PGR Oaks is a four-round series. Dogs are eliminated with each round. Two six-dog semifinals are set for Saturday, October 19. the top two finishers in each heat will be advancing to compete in the Saturday, October 26 final.
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Working their way through four rounds of racing, the PGR Oaks is as much about attrition as it is about pure speed. To be the top dog, these greyhounds must be bringing their A game to the track on four successive Saturdays if they want that exclusive title.
This race has been contested since 1927 and is one of the most traditional annual events in UK greyhound racing.
Let’s look at the top contenders to take home this year’s PGR Oaks championship.
When trainer Patrick Janssens was outlining his seasonal plans for Druids Say Go, the original blueprint was to pass on the PGR Oaks. He wasn’t certain whether the dog would be able to handle the 480-meter distance.
Well, the step up in distance hasn’t deterred Druids Say Go. She’s won twice now at this length. A dog that enjoys running on the rail, she won easily in her first heat of the PGR Oaks from the four hole.
The opening line favorite to win the PGR Oaks, Queen Joni has also been right at the top of her game. She’s won 11 races in a row, the last seven victories coming following her return from a 54-day break.
Over her last 21 races, Queen Joni shows 20 wins. She’s posted 14 of those victories at distances of 480 meters or greater.
Trainer Liz McNair has done well in the PGR Oaks. She won in 2009 with Shaws Dilemma and in 2012 with Droopys Hope. Her trainee Queen Jessiej was second in this race in 2020. McNair is also sending out contender Queen Dusty (+1600) in this year’s race.
After winning her first-round division, Icemans Girl came home second behind Queen Joni in the second round.
Icemans Girl has finished first or second in 10 of her last 11 starts. She’s also well experienced with racing at longer distances.
A longshot on the board, Coppies Ella does carry the pedigree of one of the best conditioners of PGR Oaks greyhounds. Her trainer Kevin Hutton has won the PGR Oaks three times over the past 11 years.
He was victorious with Droopy Daniel (2013), Ravenswood Flo (2018) and Bull Run Byte (2019). Hutton’s had a dog in the final each of the past six years. A winner of five of her last eight starts, Coppies Ella will be hard-pressed to make it seven in a row. She’s been third in both of her PGR Oaks heats.
While certainly not one of the top betting choices in this race, Chamberlain Kate does have one big plus in her corner. That would be trainer Carol Weatherall.
Weatherall won last year’s PGR Oaks with No Rush. Chamberlain Kate won her first-round heat but barely survived the second round, finishing third in her division.
It’s difficult to look at anyone beyond Druids Say Go to win this race. She’s answered every challenge put before her so far this season.
Beyond her current 10-race win streak, Druids Say Go has been the winner in 17 of her last 18 starts. Her exceptional early speed makes her a threat from any post position.
Bob Duff has been covering the online sports betting and casino industry since 2016. From major sporting events such as the NFL, NBA, MLB, UFC, NHL, Olympic Games and UEFA Champions League soccer, he’s also offered betting advice on such sports as chess, surfing, rugby and even marble racing. Duff has worked in the sports media industry since 1984. As a sports columnist with The Windsor Star, CanWest News Services, Postmedia and MSNBC.com, he covered a variety of major events, including the Stanley Cup final, World Cup of Hockey, Super Bowl, World Series, the 1996 Atlanta and 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games, NBA Finals, Ryder Cup, FIFA World Cup, NCAA Final Four and the Memorial Cup. Duff is partners in Detroit Hockey Now, a Detroit Red Wings web site. He is also the co-producer of the Give And Go Sport Education documentary that discusses the advantages of a multi-sport lifestyle in youth sport. He has also freelanced for such publications as The Hockey News, Beckett Hockey, Faceoff and Prospects Magazine. Duff is a contributor to The NHL Guide And Record Book, and Total Hockey, helped the NHL significantly in writing and research projects related to the league's 100th anniversary celebrations, and is listed as an honorary member of the Elias Sports Bureau. He is a member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association and the Baseball Writers Association Of America, through which he is on the writers’ committee that votes annually on the candidates for the Baseball Hall of Fame. As well, he is a published author of more than 25 books. Duff's books include The China Wall: The Timeless Legend of Johnny Bower; The Bruise Brothers: Hockey's Heavyweight Champions; Nicklas Lidstrom: The Pursuit of Perfection; Nine: A Tribute To Gordie Howe; Nineteen: A Tribute To Steve Yzerman; Seven: A Tribute to Ted Lindsay; and The History of Hockeytown; and I Wore 21: The Desmond Howard Story. Duff doesn’t merely write about sports, he plays them. He was an ice hockey goalie for 50 years, once famously winning a charity penalty shot shootout competition against NHL star Jason Spezza, and still plays rugby in the Niagara Rugby Union for Windsor Rogues RFC.