Month: May 2021

Spankem to debut for new trainers By Adam Hamilton   Top class Kiwi pacer Spankem will kick-start a massive couple of months at Albion Park when he steps out next Saturday night. The former All Stars’ Miracle Mile winner will have his first start for Darren Weeks and Kylie Rasmussen in the standing-start Flashing Red as stepping-stone to Group 1 races like the Sunshine Sprint and Blacks A Fake during Queensland’s huge Constellations Carnival. Spankem looked sharp winning an Albion Park trial last Friday, seemingly in second gear. Rasmussen said he…

It’s IRT Harness Jewels week, and tonight Trackside will broadcast the Box Seat Preview Show at 9 pm. Greg O’Connor and Michael Guerin will analyse each race and punters can hear from key trainers and drivers including Natalie Rasmussen, Blair Orange, John Dunn, Tony Herlihy, Maurice McKendry, Ben, Zac and David Butcher and Mark Jones.   Sunday will see nine Group Ones at Cambridge Raceway, all worth $100,000.  The team will also try to extend their Bet of the Week winning streak to 13 weeks on end. The Box Seat preview…

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk  The deluge sweeping across Canterbury has many in the harness racing community on edge, with hopes that for some the worst may be over. A state of emergency is in force right across Canterbury, with large areas of flooding, road closures, hundreds evacuated from their homes, and bridges washed away in what is being called a one-in-a-100 year event. Mid Canterbury’s been one of the worst affected and champion driver Ricky May, who’s lived in Methven all his life, says “I’ve never known…

By Joshua Smith, Harness News Desk Fred Fletcher didn’t let the torrential rain dampen his spirits on Sunday, with the veteran trainer taking home a winning double at Addington Raceway. That took him past 500 career wins, 477 on his own account (1978-2021) and 24 in partnership with Mark Smolenski (1988-90). The weekend deluge was the biggest Fletcher has seen in his lifetime, but he said the quality track at Addington meant racing on Sunday was never in danger. “It’s always good getting a double, especially on a wet day,”…