Coolavanny Aunty earns victory in the Arena Racing Company Grand Prix

If there’s one thing we love about greyhound racing, it’s the ability to throw up the most dramatic and entertaining tussles — seemingly from nowhere. For greyhound fans in Sunderland, the recent Arena Racing Company Grand Prix certainly provided plenty of fireworks, with Coolavanny Aunty ultimately emerging as the victor after a cracking race. Those placing a greyhound bet on Betdaq were given some real drama.

Despite the close attention of kennelmate Coolavanny Bani, who burst out of the traps looking like a strong favourite to defend the title she won last year, Coolavanny Aunty was able to hold her own and deliver a fine victory. The real winner was trainer Angela Harrison, who must be pinching herself that she has two world-class dogs operating and performing at such a high level.

Having won the Empress Stakes at Towcester in 2021, and also the Essex Vase at Romford earlier this season, Coolavanny Aunty is a greyhound in fine form, and it’s no surprise that she delivered a stunning performance at Sunderland to claim another major honor. It was a hard-earned victory — one that Harrison and the gathered spectators won’t forget in a hurry.

“The moment Coolavanny Bani sprang from the traps, I was sure we had a fantastic race about to unfold,” reflected greyhound racing commentator Andrew Dalby. “She went quicker than Little Seven’s split before Coolavanny Aunty’s semi-final track record victory – Bani’s sectional was 15.58sec compared to Little Seven’s 15.64sec the previous week.

“However another record always looked unlikely because, whereas Aunty could glide past the wide-running Little Seven on her way to the record books, now she faced negotiating her way past as tricky a greyhound to overtake as I’ve ever seen in Coolavanny Bani.

“Farneys Chloe’s switch towards the inside at the fifth bend helped to persuade Aunty to prefer a winning outside route to grab a half-length victory and round off a historic rivalry because Bani’s set for retirement after they compete in separate Monmore races for the (Arc/Entain) Trainers’ Judgement Night later this week.

“It really is an amazing rivalry in many ways, but a friendly one and quite staggering one given they’re both trained by Angela (Harrison)!”

For those who had backed Coolavanny Aunty based on the greyhound racing tips, there was a real sense of satisfaction as the bitch delivered a brilliant display. With Coolavanny Bani set for retirement in the near future, the pressure will be on Aunty to take on the mantle as one of Harrison’s most consistent performers.

The wins she has enjoyed over the last year or so suggest that Coolavanny Aunty still has plenty to give, and it will be interesting to see how she performs in the other big races that are still to come this season. Harrison will be doing all she can to build on these performances, and right now she’ll be thrilled at her dog’s performance in Sunderland.

It’s an exciting time to be a greyhounds fan with so many dramatic races taking place on a weekly basis. Coolavanny Aunty’s stunning win is simply the latest installment.