Day: 8 October 2024

A quality Class 3 dash winds up Happy Valley’s eight-race fixture on Wednesday night (9 October), where Super Joy N Fun (NZ) (What’s The Story) and Reward Smile face off again along with 10 others in the HK$1.86 million Pottinger Handicap (1200m). First and second, respectively, last month over the course and distance, Super Joy N Fun denied a fast-closing Reward Smile by a neck. Aided with gate five that evening, Super Joy N Fun instead steps away from the widest of 12 barriers under jockey Jerry Chau tomorrow night.…

Auckland Thoroughbred Racing (ATR) is delighted to announce an exciting initiative in partnership with the Victoria Racing Club (VRC).  For the first time, the winner of the Barfoot & Thompson Auckland Cup will be exempt from any ballot for both the Lexus Roy Higgins (late March) and Lexus Andrew Ramsden (mid-May). Both of these races offer ballot exemption into the coveted Lexus Melbourne Cup, providing a wonderful opportunity for the Barfoot & Thompson Auckland Cup winner to compete on an international level. In commenting on the initiative, Craig Baker, ATR’s…

Dragon Leap (Pierro) has bowed out of racing with perhaps the greatest honour Matamata trainer Lance O’Sullivan could bestow on him. Just one horse has previously been retired to Wexford Stables over its luminary history, and that was New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame sprinter Mr Tiz. But O’Sullivan, whose late father Dave and brother Paul were both Hall of Fame trainer inductees from Wexford, has put Dragon Leap on a pedestal and given him a similar retirement distinction. “Over all the years, we’ve only given one horse the privilege…

Liam Riordan will add to the growing list of Australian jockeys crossing the Tasman to ride in New Zealand when he heads to Ashburton on Saturday. The 27-year-old Victorian has formed an association with Te Akau Racing through their Cranbourne barn, and he has accepted the invitation of trainer Mark Walker to ride for the stable in New Zealand this weekend. “I have ridden for Te Akau a few times in Melbourne and I am good friends with Ben Gleeson (Cranbourne assistant trainer),” Riordan said. “I pondered with the idea…

This week on the Guerin Report, we witness history with the death of Singapore Racing as Michael looks into what comes from such a bizarre event, how it happened and how they tried to save themselves from this occurring. Guerin Report – Singapore Racing, Ep. 6 (youtube.com)

Proven stayer Mahrajaan (Kitten’s Joy) remains firmly on target for a crack at the Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) despite the weather ruling out an intended lead-up outing. The Shaun Ritchie and Colm Murray-trained chestnut was to have stepped out in last Saturday’s Gr.3 Bart Cummings (2520m), but the camp decided to wait a week in the hope of a better surface. “He’s guaranteed a run in the Cup now, he’s 23rd in order and as we know they run 24 so he’s in the race, but we didn’t want to run…

Te Aroha trainer Peter Lock is hoping to make another successful Central Districts raid with two strong chances at Waverley on Wednesday. He will be represented by the in-form Footloose in the Equivets NZ – SRVS Handicap (1400m) while Badgeringdawitness will relish the rise in distance in the Roper Agriculture Handicap (1600m). Lock produced one of the star performers on the Hawera undercard last Saturday when Debit (NZ) (Darci Brahma) returned from a lengthy spell to thump her Rating 65 rivals over 1200m. The daughter of Darci Brahma was making…