Category: Punting

The punters came for him late and Republican Party delivered with a powerhouse performance in today’s $100,000 Group 1 Ascot Park Hotel Invercargill Cup. Trained by Cran and Chrissie Dalgety and driven by son Carter, Republican Party, who was a fast finishing third in last month’s IRT New Zealand Trotting Cup, was backed in from $6 to $3.50.  After starting off 10m, Republican Party was put into the race by Dalgety, heading to the front with two laps to go. From there he was just far too strong, giving Dalgety…

By Brigette Solomon  Ohaupo trainer Jason Teaz was rapt to train a winning double for owner and breeder Bill Hickey at Cambridge Raceway last night. “It was really nice to get a double and so great that they were for Bill,” said Teaz, “he’s in his 80’s now and his health hasn’t been the best lately but he’s still breeding horses and putting them in training, and he really deserves any success he gets, he just lives for his horses.” “Unfortunately, he couldn’t be there last night, and he was…

Harness racing on a Friday doesn’t get much bigger than today, with the Group 1 Ascot Park Hotel Invercargill Cup meeting starting at 2.55pm, followed by 10 $100,000 Golden Gait Finals at Alexandra Park from 5.16pm. Star stable set to shine in Golden Gait   By Michael Guerin The best harness racing stable of the year is set to dominate the code’s newest glamour race night. Tonight’s Alexandra Park meeting sees the first running of the Golden Gait finals, 10 races worth $100,000 each to reward those horses who have…

Looking for top picks for Group 1 Ascot Park Hotel Invercargill Cup Day? The Invercargill Harness Racing Club has you covered. Check out the comprehensive tipping guide for Southland’s biggest day of harness racing on Friday. Punters and harness racing fans will be spoilt for choice with 12 races, including the Group 3 Brendan Franks Farrier David Moss Stakes and the Group 1 Ascot Park Hotel Invercargill Cup. Race 1 – Mc Knight and Brown Mobile Pace (2.55pm)  A small but select field to kick a big day off with…

Frocks at the Trots is back as part of the 2025 Team Teal campaign. The fashion in the fields competition ran for the first time in 2024 and was seen as a successful addition to the Team Teal Campaign. This year it will be run again with four heats and a final. The final winner will win a trip to Mooloolaba Peninsula Resort and be crowned the 2025 Frocks at the Trots Winner.  The four “Frocks” heats will be : Heat 1 – Cambridge Raceway – January 27 Heat 2…

By Michael Guerin A horse who snuck into his $100,000 Golden Gait final at Alexandra Park on Friday through a technicality is the biggest danger to our best two-year-old trotter. Meant To Be opened $1.80 for the two-year-old trot on Friday but is likely to start closer to $1.30, with the unbeaten Ya Eejit Ya rated his clear and perhaps only threat at $3.10. But you have to go deep into the fine print of the inaugural Golden Gait series to find how Ya Eejit Ya even got into Friday’s…

No-one’s won more Invercargill Cups than six-time winner Blair Orange, so leading into this Friday’s $100,000 Group 1 Ascot Park Hotel Invercargill Cup he talks about his favourite horses and memories. By Dave Di Somma Harness News Desk  It was back in his days as a junior driver that Blair Orange won his first Invercargill Cup. It was with the Laurence Hanrahan-trained The Tough Nut in 2000. Now he is a six time winner, the most in the Cup’s history. “I was just a kid then, driving The Tough Nut,”…

The race for the junior drivers’ premiership, Swayzee’s race day return, a notable 21st and movie night at Cambridge all feature in this week’s News Briefs.  Junior drivers’ premiership battle heats up The Junior Drivers’ premiership is down to one. Last night’s meeting at Addington saw Carter Dalgety get a Trent Yesberg-trained double with Whosdreamingnow and Major Performer to take his tally for the year to 60. He trails leader Sam Thornley by just one. He had a win last night with Kawactus. Snapping on the leading pair’s heels is…