Category: Meeting Previews

By Michael Guerin Kerryn Tomlinson wants the win and the trip this time. But first the Oamaru driver who surged into contention for the McMillan Equine Feeds Junior Drivers Champs with a win at Addington on Wednesday, has to win the series which has been left one of the most open in its history. Tomlinson and Seth Hill were the winners of the two heats at Addington seeing them  both high up on the stacked leaders board. Zev Meredith leads the series with 37 points just one clear of Tomlinson…

THE ASCENT and THE VELOCITY are the brand new $500,000 slot races that will be a big part of the Show Day Twilight race meeting at Addington Raceway on Friday, November 15. The $30,000 slots for the two races for the three-year-old trotters and pacers were snapped up in quick time – so who are the people behind the names? Over the next few weeks we will profile many of the slot holders. Today it’s The Kiwi Syndicate By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk On the face of it…

A first training win for Jo and Dylan Ferguson, Dexter’s exploits in the USA, a new Sires’ Stakes podcast and a horse calendar all feature in this week’s News Briefs.   Mr and Mrs Ferguson have first win   The newly minted Mr and Mrs Ferguson had  their first training win as a partnership at Cambridge last night when Mike Ross won the Hidden Lake Hotel and Apartments Mobile Pace. Jo and Dylan joined forces as a partnership on September 1 after getting married in August. Paying $15 for the…

By Dave Di Somma Harness News Desk   It’s been a decent wait between wins and Auckland trainer Steve Cornwall rates Sassy Star’s victory at Cambridge Raceway as “one of his most satisfying yet.” Sassy Star and James Stormont thwarted So Mystifying by a nose to win the Racing, Resilience and Rural Women 15 October Mobile Trot on October 8. It was her eighth start for Cornwall after she’d been trucked north earlier this year after doing all her early racing, including having four wins, for Ashburton trainers Brent and…

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk The news isn’t good for two of the country’s top drivers who are facing longer than expected recoveries after recent setbacks. Sarah O’Reilly won’t be back in the sulky this year after breaking her arm in July while Benjamin Butcher says he’s got weeks of physio on his shoulder before he returns to race day driving. For Butcher though the more pressing concern is fully recovering from what was a serious concussion suffered when he was thrown to the track while driving Iron…

By Jonny Turner   The team behind Old Town Road are certain Australasia never got to see the best of their brilliant pacer. Wear and tear injuries have halted the six-year-old’s pacer spring campaign with the decision being made to retire the outstanding top-level performer. Old Town Road compiled an outstanding resume for trainer and part-owner John Dickie, placing in the biggest of races like the Hunter Cup, The Race by Grins and the New Zealand Free-For-All. Though a Group One win proved elusive, Dickie is certain it was a…