WENDY'S GIRL has the speed to run her rivals ragged in the five-furlong Richmond Suite Handicap at Catterick.

Trainer Bobby Elliot has his flying filly in peak form at present, drubbing the opposition on her latest visit to the track seven days ago when bursting clear at the half-way stage to record an embarrassingly easy success.

Wendy's Girl (4.30) now drops back a furlong to the minimum trip, but theoretically at least that shouldn't make a blind bit of difference such was the sublime turbo-charged turn of foot she showed on last week's virtuoso exhibition. In terms of the quality there's no cribbing the excellent standard of the two-year-olds contesting the opening Middleham Suite Novice Auction Stakes.

Michael Dods will be hoping his useful youngster, Society Music, can make it three from four in the £5,000 event, however having to concede weight to all round represents an extremely tall order.

In the search of a viable alternative one worthy of serious consideration is Lamh Eile (2.30), who looked a classy individual on her winning debut at Ayr. Time will tell if the seven-length defeat she inflicted on a fair bunch was a fluke or not, although I'm inclined to take the victory at face value, in which case David Barron's filly should remain unbeaten.

A little further afield at Lingfield, Trois Etoile (4.50) tries a mile-and-a-quarter for the first time in the Saturday Night Classified Stakes.

John Hills has booked his younger brother Richard to do the steering on Trois Etoile, who has twice caught the eye making late headway over shorter distances in recent weeks. She's by the 2,000 Guineas runner-up, Grand Lodge, whose offspring have a superb record over middle-distances, so theoretically lack of strength in the stamina department should not be a problem for the selection.

You couldn't find Kempton-bound Spanish Don (7.25) with a search party at the start of the season, but now that David Elsworth's gelding has shifted into overdrive, he's the one to side with in the toteexacta Handicap.

The only way to ride Spanish Don is to sit and suffer in rear simply because he seems to need a target to aim for. Young Liam Keniry executed the tactics to perfection when the partnership collected at Newbury in October 2003, and seeing as he knows the horse's mind so well, it is no surprise to see him back on board this evening.

Leave the finale to Alan Swinbank's Red Romeo (8.55), strongly fancied to complete a hat-trick under the expert handling of reigning champion jockey Kieren Fallon.

* Janus caned the Brighton bookies yesterday with an 8-1 winning nap, Ziet d'Alsace.

* Bond City will bid to give Yorkshire trainer Bryan Smart a second win in the £135,000 Weatherbys Super Sprint at Newbury on Saturday.

The Thirsk-based handler saddled Don Puccini to land the five-furlong dash in 1999 and this year's representative heads into the contest after finishing third in a novices' event at Beverley earlier this month. ''He runs and is very well,'' said Smart. ''Fergal (Lynch) probably went too soon last time out, and was a bit annoyed with himself, but other than that we are going there hoping for a big run.

''He wouldn't be far behind Don Puccini.''

The Trans Island gelding kicked off his career by running over six furlongs at Doncaster, but Smart feels that he is more suited to the minimum distance.