Hellmuth Hoping To Start Cranbourne Riot

BOX four is Keith Hellmuth's biggest concern with home-bred youngster Start A Riot ahead of Saturday night's lucrative Trio's Winter Cup Final (520m) at Cranbourne.

Start A Riot, a daughter of Magic Sprite and Flash Riot, bred and raced by Hellmuth and wife Lisa, improved her impressive career strike rate to 11 from 24 when winning her heat of the $20,000 to-the-winner Winter Cup last Wednesday.

While the Hellmuths are based at nearby Pearcedale, Start A Riot was making only her third appearance at Cranbourne in the first of five heats, having finished unplaced in both previous starts at her home track.

WATCH: Start A Riot's Impressive heat victory

Start A Riot started at $8.20 from box seven, with Flynn, winner of the Group 3 Bill Collins Memorial Speed Star at Sandown Park in May and a Group 1 Harrison-Dawson finalist, the $1.50 favourite from box five.

Start A Riot showed great pace to cross to the front, while Flynn was out of play at the first corner, caught wide and at the rear of the field.

Callum's Son ($14.20) headed Start A Riot turning for home but Start A Riot came again in the straight to score by .83 of a length in 30.59s.

"She'd only been to Cranbourne twice before and failed both times," Keith Hellmuth said.

"To be honest, we don't race at Cranbourne very often. We don't really like the track and when you draw the middle there you're in all sorts of trouble unless you really ping and she's drawn four for the final.

"She began well in her heat and I knew when she straightened up she'd win because she's really strong. I don't think people realise how strong she is."

While the Winter Cup is restricted to grade 5, 6 and 7 greyhounds at Cranbourne, there's no shortage of talent in the final line-up, with Philip Smith's Eight Ball continuing his exceptional recent form with the fastest qualifying time of 30.35s, his fifth win from his last eight starts.

"There's some nice dogs in the race and I don't like the box," Hellmuth conceded.

"If she can really ping – and she's capable of pinging – I give her a good chance but drawing in the middle makes it tough.

"We're hoping for a good start and it really depends what the other dogs do around her. If they don't touch her she's definitely got a chance. You've got to be in it to win it!"

The Hellmuths have enjoyed great success with Start A Riot's line.

Her mother, Flash Riot (Barcia Bale – Raya Riot), was a half-sister to Group 1 Hume Cup hero Rockoon and a litter sister to Fuelish (19 wins), Headline (16), Rowdy Ronda (9) and Ricardo Racer (7).

"Flash Riot was from a very good litter," Hellmuth explained.

"She was real fast – she won her maiden at Cranbourne in 30.24s – but she was mad. We actually gave her away twice and they both gave her back to us. We were stuck with her so we decided to breed a litter.

"There's four in the Magic Sprite litter. Start A Riot is the best but the others have all won races – Sparkle Motion (8 wins), Handsome (6) and Rum Dum (6). The others are short-coursers but I reckon Start A Riot will get 600m.

"Because Flash Riot's first litter were going so well we bred another litter, to Fernando Bale. There was 11 pups in the litter and they're about 13 weeks old now. They're all for sale too!"