Nikoli Bale brought group one form into the Wagga Gold Cup heats and definitely delivered.

Coming off a sixth in the Harrison-Dawson at The Meadows last time out, Nikoli Bale appreciated the drop in grade.

Taking advantage of box two, Nikoli Bale was able to lead all the way to take out the first heat of the Graeme Hull Memorial Cup on Friday night.

Nikoli Bale is no stranger to feature racing at Wagga but has generally been a bridesmaid for some well credentialled kennelmates.

He had been placed in three of his four starts at the track, but this time around stole the show.

He clocked a slashing 29.83 seconds, which sits just outside Deliver's track record of 29.71.

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However he had a fight on his hands holding out My Boy Rockin'.

After winning the Million Dollar Chase Regional Final from the one box, where Nikoli Bale was sixth, the Brian Smith-trained greyhound wasn't the fastest at the start and was crossed early.

However he stuck at it to finish two lengths away and book his place in next week's final.

The pair were the only two who had experience over the track and distance and it showed as they gapped their rivals.

Quinlan Bale finished third for Victorian trainer Samantha Gibbons, beaten eight lengths.

Grenfell tasted more success in the second heat as Xavien Bale, who finished second behind My Boy Rockin' in their last meeting at Wagga, dominated his heat in the early stages.

He got out to a big lead before Kelsey Bale closed late for Gibbons but finished a half length away.

However the time was significantly slower than his kennelmate, clocking 30.05, which was a slight improvement on his previous best time at the track.

Xavien Bale has now won three of his last three starts.

Geelong Cup winner Yozo Bale then added to his strong record at the track to take out the third heat for Correy Grenfell.

The final will be run on Friday. However the club has added a meeting to their cup carnival and also races on Monday.

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