By Adam Hamilton Champion driver Chris Alford is buzzing about his return to Cambridge for Friday night’s huge Grins Night of Champions. The 54-year-old has the drives on Aussie outsider Triple Eight in the $1m Race by Grins and exciting trotter Aldebaran Zeus in the Group 2 Waikato Flying Mile. He’s driven at Cambridge before though not regularly. “The first was back in 1985 or ’86 as a junior driver, then I went back in 2018 when Wobelee ran in the Harness Jewels.” Wobelee, Australia’s champion young trotter of the…
Month: April 2023
Kelsey Bale – a ‘Geelong Flyer’?
The Group 2 Sportsbet Geelong Gold Cup (520m) series kicks off with a ‘magnificent seven’ heats on Friday night. And they loom – particularly by ‘weight of numbers’ – as a Gibbons vs Grenfell scenario. They clash in all seven heats! Kelsey Bale (Heat 2 – Box 4) – an exhilarating last-to-first winner of the Ballarat Cup – spearheads white-hot Daniel Gibbons’ ‘notable nonet’. GRV expert form analyst Dale Code – posting on GRV Facebook – rated Kelsey Bale’s performance last week as the “best run he has ever witnessed”. “Given…
The Showdown 2023 betting preview & top tips | Saturday, April 15
What The Showdown 2023 Where Sandown Racecourse When Saturday, April 15, 2023 Prizemoney $1,000,000 Distance 1200m Conditions 2YO | Set Weights 2022 winner Kings Consort (6) | T: Anthony & Sam Freedman | J: Mark Zahra (58kg) Visit Ladbrokes The 2023 edition of The Showdown – reserved for two-year-old progeny of Victorian-based stallions nominated for the VOBIS Sires Race Series – headlines the program out of Sandown on Saturday afternoon, with $1 million on the line. A field of 13 juveniles have accepted for the 1200m event, with just four…
The Quokka 2023 preview & betting strategy | Saturday, April 15
What The Quokka 2023 Where Ascot Racecourse – 71 Grandstand Rd, Ascot WA 6104 When Saturday, April 15, 2023 Prizemoney $4,000,000 Distance 1200m Status Special Conditions Conditions Weight For Age Visit Ladbrokes The inaugural running of The Quokka will take place at Ascot Racecourse this weekend, with some of the best sprinters from Western Australia and across the country battling it out over 1200m for their share of the $4 million prize pool. It will be the first slot race of its kind in Western Australia, with 14 slot holders…
Champagne Stakes 2023 preview & best bets | Saturday, April 15
What 2023 Champagne Stakes Where Royal Randwick Racecourse – Alison Rd, Randwick NSW 2031 When Saturday, April 15, 2023 Prizemoney $600,000 Distance 1600m Status Group 1 Conditions 2YO | Set Weights 2022 winner She’s Extreme (6) | T: Anthony Cummings | J: Tommy Berry (54.5kg) Watch Live Visit Ladbrokes Chris Waller will be looking to claim the Triple Crown for the two-year-olds with a win in Saturday’s Champagne Stakes at Royal Randwick Racecourse. Shinzo took out the Group 1 Golden Slipper for Waller, while Militarized will be looking for…
Wiseman rues Roughly absence from Alice Springs Cup Carnival
NT jockey Sonja Wiseman says 10-year-old mare Roughly will be missed as she recovers from a tendon injury. Fine weather and excellent racing kicked off the Alice Springs Cup Carnival last Saturday, but the injury to the popular Roughly on the eve of April’s five-raceday extravaganza was still a major blow. The Paul Gardner-trained 10-year-old mare injured a tendon and was scratched on March 25 when she was due to have her 65th career start. Her longevity is to be admired considering her racing life started seven years ago, but…
Poupee en route to Pioneer Sprint after Alice Springs win
Poupee (inside), with Sonya Wiseman aboard, dukes it out with the Tayarn Halter-trained Expert Witness at Fannie Bay. (Caroline Camilleri/Darwin Photography Professionals) Jockey Sonja Wiseman and trainer Tom Logan are eyeing the $100,000 Pioneer Sprint (1200m) on April 30 at the end of the Alice Springs Cup Carnival with five-year-old mare Poupee. The daughter of Better Than Ready has impressed since arriving in the Top End, and on Saturday – with Wiseman aboard – she won by five lengths in open company over 1100m in her Red Centre debut. Greg…
Telfer promises aggressive tactics in the $1m The Race by Grins
By Michael Guerin Premiership-winning trainer Steve Telfer is promising the $1million Race by Grins won’t be a simple stroll around Cambridge Raceway for favourite Copy That on Friday night. Two-time New Zealand Cup winner Copy That has opened the $2.20 favourite for the harness slot race and has rarely been beaten in front, especially in New Zealand where his open class form has been incredibly consistent for over two years. But while Copy That seems to have drawn ideally at barrier three in the 2200m mobile pace, trainer Telfer says…
Divine Prophet to stand at Highview Stud
Highview Stud has welcomed a further addition to their stallion ranks, with Divine Prophet set to stand at the Waikato farm this coming breeding season. The Group One-winning son of Choisir is a full-brother to in vogue sire Proisir and Highview Stud principal Brent Gillovic believes he will prove popular with New Zealand breeders. Divine Prophet won three of his 10 starts for trainers Michael, Wayne and John Hawkes, including the Gr.1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m) and Gr.3 Up & Coming Stakes (1300m), and placed in the Gr.1 Champagne Stakes (1600m)…
Green Light On | Episode 126 – Sandown Park form plus David Bourke and Maria Barber
In this edition of Green Light On, James Van de Maat examines Thursday night’s Premier Racing at Sandown Park. James also caught up with trainers David Bourke and Maria Barber. greyhoundracingvic · Green Light On – Episode 126 – David Bourke, Maria Barber and SP form Don’t forget, you can listen to Green Light On every Thursday and Saturday on your favourite podcast app.