By Jonny Turner A lot can change in the year of harness racing and there is no better example than the 2024 Placemakers Hannon Memorial at Oamaru on Sunday. A fine field has been assembled for the traditional New Zealand Cup lead-up with the line up reflecting this season’s changing of the open class guard. Just three horses that contested last year’s Hannon return this year, with a raft of up and comers getting the chance to put their hand up to become a New Zealand Cup contender, just as…
Category: Harness
It’s Electrifying heads Butcher’s drives at Cambridge tonight
By Brigette Solomon Zachary Butcher hopes to be in for a good night with a book of six tidy drives at Cambridge Raceway tonight. With eight races programmed for tonight’s meeting, three of Butcher’s drives are early fixed price favourites with the TAB including Desistella (R6), who he also trains and co-owns, and the first starter Hadmeablast (R3) for the Barry Purdon and Scott Phelan stable. “There’s some good form behind a few of them tonight and hopefully we’ll get a bit of luck too,” says Butcher. First up for…
Waldron takes six to Methven
By Mike Love Ashburton trainer Ben Waldron takes a good sized team to the grass at Methven today, with his best chance being Penny Weight ($8.00FF) in Race 6, the Katie Cox Memorial (Fillies and Mares) Mobile Pace. The five-year-old Prodigal Seelster mare will be looking to go back-to-back after an emphatic victory at Ashburton a week ago. “That’s why we’ve persevered with her. We’ve always thought she could win a few but for one reason or another she hasn’t really fired a shot, but she showed what she’s capable…
Methven selections – Marc Cookson
Grass track racing resumes post a winter break, at Methven today. It’s a bumper 12 race programme starting at 11.44am. Trials on the grass last week conducted by the Mt Hutt Trotting Club are a good guide to what is usually a tricky day to find winners. Here’s commentator-Trackside presenter Marc Cookson’s best at Mt Harding. Race 1 Mt Hutt Workouts Mobile Pace 7 Verducci : Lightly raced over winter but when he did race it was in strong fields. Four of his 6 placings so far have been on…
Race to race selections at Addington tonight
Commentator Matt Cross goes race to race at Addington Raceway tonight. Race 1 – Caduceus Club 2YO Fillies Classic Prelude – 5.08pm. Gone Surfin lines up off barrier one, first up since the start of June when she won the G3 Helen Pope Fillies Classic at Ashburton. She’s had two trials, her latest one she was neutral off the gate, worked forward, led, and held on by 2 1/4L with a gap of 6 1/4L back to third. She ran home in 55.8 & 27.7. She looks ready to win…
The Ordeal and the New Brighton Cups highlight Friday night
It’s Friday night and that means a huge night of racing at both Addington and Alexandra Park. Direct qualification for the IRT New Zealand Trotting Cup and the Renwick Farms Dominion Trot is on the line at Addington while Jeremiah looks the one to beat in the new Metro Final at Auckland. Sherlock returns in tough first up assignment at Addington. By Michael Guerin The TAB bookies and trainer Nathan Purdon don’t see eye to eye on Sherlock’s return at Addington on Friday tonight. While both think he can win…
Key changes for New Brighton and Ordeal Cup fields at Addington
By Michael Guerin Two key changes from the last New Zealand Cup lead-up to the next at Addington on Friday could have a huge impact on the result. The Avon City Ford New Brighton Cup is the next major Cup lead-up this Friday and the conditions look similar, a 2600m standing start with plenty of the same names as the Allied Security Maurice Holmes Vase won by Dalton Shard two weeks ago. But there are two big differences. One is the return of former age group star Sherlock, who was…
McDowell hoping to get Blue September off on winning note
By Mike Love Blue September, the annual New Zealand Prostate Cancer Foundation fund-raiser, starts at Ashburton on Sunday. Every time one of the Blue September ambassadors wins during the month money will go to the campaign thanks to contributions from Harness Racing New Zealand as well as individual clubs and sponsors. Last year around $30,000 was raised, with hopes that will be surpassed this year. Already $3000 is in the kitty already after three of the ambassadors, Blair Orange, Jonny Cox and Robbie Close did a sky dive in Auckland…
Friday Night Lights – two-year olds to the fore
It’s Friday night with action again at Alexandra Park and Addington. Up north the Telfers have a huge team of two-year-old fillies in race 5, the Dunstan Horsefeeds Sires’ Stakes Heat, while at Addington there’ll be a lot of interest in the return of another gun two-year-old in Ukraine. Telfers line up six in Sires’ Stakes heat By Michael Guerin It is bring-your-own-sulky-night at Alexandra Park tonight. Not for everybody mind you, just some of the driver’s partnering the Team Telfer horses in Race 5, the Dunstan Horsefeeds Sires’ Stakes…
Bring on The Muscle “ready” for race day return at Winton
By Jonny Turner Star southern three-year-old Bring On The Muscle will start telling trainer Clark Barron about his future endeavours at Winton on Thursday. The Barron stable lines up two horses in the talented three-year-old trotter and the more than handy maidener Always On Sale, both bred and owned by the trainer’s wife Jackie. Bring On The Muscle looks to have returned in excellent order ahead of what should be a big spring campaign judging by his recent workouts. “He seems to have come up well and he is telling…