Caption: Here’s Tears and Robbie Britton take centre stage after victory in last year’s Group 1 Fanta Bale Superstayers at The Meadows. The pair are chasing a repeat performance in 2021 (Photo: BlueStream Pictures)

Group 1 Fanta Bale Superstayers (725m)

Best 8, The Meadows

Heats February 20, Final February 27

$100,000 to the winner

By DAVID BRASCH

WITH the recent retirement of champion Tornado Tears, Robbie Britton\’s chance for a stroll down memory lane come the Group 1 Fanta Bale Superstayers at The Meadows in February will rely on his brother Here\’s Tears.

Not that Here\’s Tears will be anything but a ‘super’ chance in the series. He is, of course, the defending champion.

Britton forced a name chance for the Superstayers when he took Fanta Bale to champion status back in 2018 – the Superstayers being just one of a series of Group 1 successes for the grand race bitch, who Robbie says is the ultimate professional racing greyhound … ‘the perfect race dog’.

Here\’s Tears (Fernando Bale-Tears Siam) downed True Detective and Just terms to win the Superstayers in 2020. He has since won two other Group finals, a Listed victory, and been placed or a finalist in six other Group races.

Along the way he also broke the Sandown track record running 41.16 … not a bad way to highlight a race career earning $400,000.

No one knows Here\’s Tears better than Robbie Britton, but he has some interesting lines drawn between the two famous brothers.

\”Up to 500 metres, there has never been anything between Tornado Tears and Here\’s Tears,\” he said.

\”But, after that Tornado Tears would beat him six lengths. And that takes into account the fact Here\’s Tears holds the track record at Sandown.\”

Britton rates Tornado Tears and Space Star as the best two stayers he has prepared, unable to split them. Space Star\’s litter sister Tears Siam is the mother of Tornado Tears.

\”Here\’s Tears had always had enough by the time he\’d finished a 700 metre races,\” said Robbie.

\”But, Tornado Tears could have gone another lap again.

\”With Fanta Bale, her quality from 500 metres to 700 metres was that she was the perfect race dog. She never knew when she was beaten.\”

Tornado Tears raced once in the Superstayers at The Meadows finishing fourth to Blue Moon Rising in 2019.

He retired after 69 starts for 35 wins and 14 placings earning $999,000 in stakes.

He ran track records at Albion Park and Cannington. He won the Sandown Cup, Albion Park Gold Cup, National Distance, Zoom Top, Topgun Stayers all at Group 1 level. He won six other Group finals.

\”He hurt a wrist and with a month off would have needed another two to get him right again and time was running out for us all,\” said Robbie. \”I have already organised someone to take him as a pet.\”

So, when Here\’s Tears heads into the Fanta Bale Superstayers series at The Meadows come February, he will be running for the Britton kennel that has stamped itself on the race with such dominance.