SO that was the Silver Chief!

Paul Wheeler bred, Andrea Dailly trained, yet another Bale dog landing a Group 1, this time Ollie Bale.

A son of Go Wild Teddy-Zambola Bale he's from an already pretty hot litter.

Sister Prue Bale was a finalist in the Group 2 Sandown Laurels only a week or so back behind Sydney star Ritza Hattie.

Having so many greyhounds on his Young property, it is often a thought that designing pedigrees might be a bit of a rush job for Paul Wheeler.

I have never thought that.

There are many instances of what I see as carefully designed matings in the many success stories that come from the Wheeler operation.

Last Saturday night's Group 1 Silver Chief winner is just one such success story that has obviously been well planned out by Paul.

First, let's look at the background to Ollie Bale's damline.

His dam Zambola Bale (Collision-Maple Bale) was nothing short of a sensation on the racetrack and it is no wonder she produced a Group 1 winner.

She won 31 races including the Young Star Classic at Wentworth Park.

But she also won several races over 720m there and made a couple of other Group races.

She was something else.

Zambola Bale is a sister or half sister to Group performers Dyna Oats, Dentax Bale, Pindari Bale and Erica Allen…class, class, class.

It's no wonder Ollie Bale can run.

Zambola Bale's dam Maple Bale was unraced. Wheeler himself told me some years ago she broke a leg and was kept for breeding. She had shown enough ability to say she would have made it on the track.

Maple Bale is a daughter of Spiral Nikita-Vista Bale.

She is a sister to Buttsie Bale who was a very fine Group 1 performer making a Perth Cup final and a SA Derby as well as winning The Schweppes at Cannington.

He is one of those dogs Wheeler has given his chance at stud, much in the mould of Turanza Bale, Bartrim Bale, Ashom Bale.

You know the stud dogs, shunned by everyone until Paul produces superstars by them and then everyone is desperate to get on the wagon.

At stud, Buttsie Bale has already sired Group 1 National Futurity winner Crystin Bale. (Anyone interested in pedigrees should take a quick look at that which went into producing Crystin Bale.)

Ollie Bale's fourth dam Luana Bale is the granddam of Group 1 National Sprint winner Henerick Bale.

Fifth dam Red Fire Bale is the third dam of champion Whisky Assassin.

This is the family of Mercia Bale, and of course runs directly to the Wheeler foundation bitch Gail's Beauty.

But what interested me most when researching the pedigree of Ollie Bale is the fact his second dam maple Bale is a half sister to a bitch called Benden Flex.

Benden Flex (Ashom Bale-Vista Bale) was a pretty good city winner at Meadows and Sandown.

At stud, Wheeler put her to Go Wild Teddy to produce the superstar Dyna Lachlan winner of the Group 1 Australian and Adelaide Cups.

By now, anyone who has followed this topic should be aware that when Wheeler put Zambola Bale to Go Wild Teddy, he was bidding to recreate the pedigree of none other than Dyna Lachlan.

We can safely say he is part the way to doing just that with a Group 1 Silver Chief victory already.

Dyna Lachlan won his Cups in 2010. Ollie Bale was whelped late in 2011.

Wheeler knew exactly what he was doing putting Zambola Bale to Go Wild Teddy.

For the average "Joe Blow" getting a frozen semen straw to Go Wild Teddy is difficult and a costly exercise.

Paul obviously doesn't have the limitations of accessing straws to the dogs he want…dogs like Go Wild Teddy.

It's like Shiekh Mohammad of Dubai, the worldwide face of the Godolphin thoroughbred empire.

The Shiekh can access any bloodlines he wants in his bid for racing domination.

Paul Wheeler has a Godolphin-like stranglehold on greyhound racing worldwide.

While Wheeler put together a "proven" pedigree when he mated Zambola Bale to Go Wild Teddy and got Ollie Bale, for me there is much more to the pedigree than just a proven recipe.

For some time I have been watching for the Go Wild Teddy-Collision cross to develop.

I believe dogs like Ollie Bale are just the tip of the iceberg for what I am certain will be a potent "nick" between the two in the future.

"Nicks" do not necessarily happen just like the pedigree of Ollie Bale…by Go Wild Teddy from a daughter of Collision.

I'm certain this pair will be found back in pedigrees, mixed together, via second, third, fourth and further generations to impact with each other.

The real link here is once again powerful damlines.

It is Web Of Silence, dam of Go Wild Teddy, with Rumble Spirit, dam of Collision.

Take the time, please, to look at how each is bred and you will notice they are genetic sisters.

Why?

Because both are daughters of Malawi's Prince, and their dams are by half brothers.

Web Of Silence's dam is a daughter of Acacia Park. Rumble Spirit's dam is by Brother Fox.

This is also why many of the best progeny of Collision carry a cross of Token Prince in their damline.

Token Prince too is bred along identical lines to Rumble Spirit. He is by Malawi's Prince and out of a bitch by a son of Brother Fox.

Rumble Spirit and Token Prince are an ideal "balance" for each other.

If and when Ollie Bale goes to stud some time in the future, obviously bitches with Token Prince in their pedigree will suit him.

KID Maximus (Where's Pedro-Aussie Belle) ran the race of his life to finish second to Ollie Bale in the Silver Chief.

He is yet another of the highly successful Where's Pedro progeny out of a daughter of History Lesson. The former Sandown track record holder Cape Hawke (now at stud) is another.

Kid Maximus' pedigree is a triple reinforcement of the Osti Lee family one that does so, so well when this is done.

I THOUGHT Empire Allen was luckless in the Silver Chief, checked just at the time he was pushing through along the rails to put himself in the race.

The son of Fear Zafonic-Dyna Celeste has a very interesting pedigree. His dam carries reinforcements of two very strong lines already found in Fear Zafonic.

That's becoming a potent theme with progeny by Fear Zafonic.