Zipping Albert Strikes Bendigo Gold

JUST two stunning solo trials at Cudal was all it took for the Hallinan clan to know they had something special on their hands in Zipping Albert.

The blue dog registered 18.65 and then 18.58 at his second trial from the boxes at the highly regarded track and his path to the next level was set in stone. 

And on Friday at Bendigo the 23-month old sprinter lived right up to that early promise with a powerhouse victory in the Jarrod Larkin Concreting Gold Rush Final (425m).

"He's one of the fastest break-ins we've had but to be fair the track at Cudal is playing better and faster these days," said Martin Hallinan.

Historically, getting down to the 19 seconds-flat was considered high class with the likes of Go Wild Teddy, Hallucinate and Where's Pedro posting sub-19 seconds times in final trials.

On Friday, in an epic finish to the $10,000 to-the-winner finale, Zipping Albert, trained for the Hallinan family by Wayne Vassallo and Karen Pitt, powered home to defeat Music Event by a neck in 23.74.

"He's got a little bit more age on him than you'd expect to see in a race like that but he's got a fair bit of ability behind him," said Wayne Vassallo.

"The dog can be very shy and timid which is why he's taken a bit longer to get to where he is. He'd only had the one field trial going into the series so I've been really happy with how he's handled himself in a field. I wasn't sure how he would to be honest."

Zipping Albert is a 23-month old son of Over Limit and Zipping Midge.

Interestingly, the pair finished down the track to the great Fernando Bale in the 2015 Group 1 Golden Easter Egg Final at Wentworth Park.

And while Zipping Albert's powerhouse Gold Rush victory was something to behold, Vassallo is confident the best of him will be seen over longer.

"I spoke to Martin (Hallinan) a few weeks out from the heats and said that I was worried that Bendigo might be a bit sharp for him," Vassallo explained.

"But we decided that the experience would do him good regardless of the result and it's worked out great. He's very strong and we'll see the best of him when he gets to 500 and maybe further."

Vassallo notched up a winning double at Friday's Bendigo card when Fancy Fabio made a successful racetrack return to score in 23.83.

"It's great to have him back racing," Vassallo said.

"He had six months off with a torn back muscle so it's been a long road back. He's only just three so hopefully it stands up and we get a good block of racing out of him."

Building up a small yet formidable team, Vassallo has recently unearthed the exciting Rolling Stone, a heat and final maiden winner at Ballarat in dashing times.

"He's got brilliant speed," Vassallo offered.

"He's still very young but I'm not sure if he'll get a strong 500. But he's doing everything right and showing a lot.

"We've only got a few in work – we're not going to trouble the scorer in terms of numbers. But we've got some nice ones to work with which always helps."