Angela Langton rates Keep It Black ahead of litter brother Keep It Blue as her best chance in Saturday night’s Group 3 Warragul St Leger final (460m) but concedes both have their work cut out in the star-studded field. At $21 and $31 respectively, Keep It Black (Box 4) and Keep It Blue (Box 1) are among the outsiders in TAB’s market on the $25,000 to-the-winner St Leger, which is dominated by $2.30 favourite Koblenz and dual G1 winner Qwara Bale and fastest heat winner Aston Fastnet, both at $4.60.…
Month: August 2021
‘Hard’ act for Luckie to follow
After celebrating a dream track record-breaking G1 Melbourne Cup victory with Hard Style Rico last November, Luckie Karabitsakos admits it was always going to be a ‘hard’ act to follow for his second litter out of Bella Rico. Hard Style Rico, which retired to stud after winning the 2021 Melbourne Cup in a sensational 28.91sec, was a fairy tale home-bred success story for Pearcedale owner/trainer Karabitsakos. Winner of 21 from 40, also claiming the G2 Shepparton Cup, Hard Style Rico is a son of US sire Bella Infrared and Bella…
New harness show launches on Monday
There’s a new show in town with a strong emphasis on finding out the on and off track experiences of some of the biggest names in Harness Racing. Greg O’Connor – One on One is a six program series of 30 minute magazine shows on industry participants across the sport. The shows will give a great insight into what makes them tick in a one on one format. Starting from Monday 9th August a new show will be released each week with the first play on Trackside that evening. Here’s…
Wood loving his Hong Kong commentator’s role
Tom Wood has come a long way since his race commentator’s debut as an 18-year-old at the Westport trots on Boxing Day 2008. For the past three years he has been a member of the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s commentating team, calling races and trials at Sha Tin and Happy Valley while becoming fully immersed in one of the racing world’s hot spots. Like so many others, Wood has been sorely tested over the past 18 months doing his best to deal with COVID-enforced restrictions. Professionally, he has been…
Wilde daring to dream with Tralee Rose
Symon Wilde is daring to dream with Tralee Rose (NZ) (Tavistock) this spring. The Warrnambool trainer has nominated the daughter of Tavistock for both the Gr.1 Caulfield (2400m) and Gr.1 Melbourne Cups (3200m), and while he admits they are lofty targets, he doesn’t want to die wondering with the mare he part-owns. “We are going to try and tailor a programme to get towards the Melbourne Cup and if we come up short there are plenty of other options for her,” Wilde told SENtrack. “We are going to give it…
It’s A Wonder to resume at Wanganui
It’s A Wonder (NZ) (Istidaad) may get a bit of a shock when he lines-up in the Jolt Coffee House 2060 at Wanganui on Friday. The Harvey Wilson-trained 11-year-old is used to lugging around nearly 70kg on his back but will carry nearly 10kg less on the flat this week. It will be a fitness run for the talented jumper as he prepares for the Pakuranga Hunt Cup (4900m) at Ellerslie in September. “He might get a shock (with the weight relief), but he might get a shock by the…
Chief Sequoyah a budding jumps superstar: Wheeler
Rhythm and ringcraft might sound like a music festival but Hall of Fame trainer John Wheeler reckons they might be the only missing ingredients for his emerging hurdler Chief Sequoyah (NZ) (Redwood) on his path to greatness. And while those attributes might be lacking at present, Wheeler believes it’s only a matter of time before Chief Sequoyah develops both. “He lacks a bit of rhythm at the moment but when he gets that, he could end up being a superstar,” Wheeler said. “He’s a pretty good horse and that rhythm…
Personal bests for the 2020-21 season
A total of 76 trainers and drivers achieved personal bests in the 2020-21 season. A search of Harness Racing New Zealand records for the season show that 25 drivers had their most wins in a season, as did 51 trainers. As well as having their best seasons Ben Hope (40) had his first Group One victory with Muscle Mountain in the Fred Shaw Memorial New Zealand Trotting Championship, as did Benjamin Butcher (44) with Enjoy Me in the Sires’ Stakes 3YO Filllies Final, and then B D Joe at the…
Daily Mail: Magic maiden ‘Zac’ back at Sandown
Thursday night’s Sandown Park card will begin with a bang when sensational debut winner Zac’s Entity makes his second appearance in a Maiden final. All eyes will be on Zac’s Entity – and perhaps the clock – after he ran a scorching 29.25sec last Sunday, scoring by 15 lengths, the second fastest performance by a maiden at Sandown, only eclipsed by G1 winner Burn One Down. Drawn in box one, Zac’s Entity, trained by master trainer Kel Greenough, will get every opportunity to make it two from two. Recent G1…
Butcher forging training path
By Joshua Smith, Harness News Desk A new name will join the northern training ranks at Alexandra Park on Thursday when Shane Butcher lines-up Aeonian in the Harness Millions Sat Feb 12 2022 At Alex Park Mobile Trot (1609m). Butcher hails from rich harness racing stock, being the grandson of John Butcher, nephew of David, and cousin of Zachary and Benjamin. While he initially followed his family members into the industry and had stints driving in both New Zealand and Australia, Butcher has spent the last few years honing his…