The past few days have been a case of pinch me once, pinch me twice as Glen Massey couple Ian and Shelley Wright have celebrated Farag’s second consecutive win in Australasia’s longest flat race, the A$300,000 Jericho Cup. First run in 2018 to commemorate the Australian and New Zealand light horse involvement in World War l, the Jericho Cup is restricted to Australian and New Zealand-bred horses. Farag, by Sacred Falls out of a Yamanin Vital mare from the South Island’s famous ‘Flight’ family, won last year’s race by 20…
Day: 3 December 2025
Sharrock happy with a damp Trentham
Allan Sharrock is balancing stronger opposition against the prospect of a rain-affected track as he weighs up Ladies Man’s chances of claiming back-to-back Gr.1 TAB Mufhasa Classics (1600m) on Saturday. Ladies Man won last year’s Trentham weight-for-age feature with a brilliant final burst to claim La Crique by a neck and will take a similar last-start formline into the race after finishing fourth in the Gr.2 Gartshore Construction Tauranga Stakes (1600m) three weeks ago. “He was good at Tauranga, I gave him a pass mark for that, but more importantly…
Temperature spike rules Crocetti out of Concorde
Saturday’s Gr.3 Concorde Stakes (1200m) at Pukekohe will be missing one of its headline acts after a temperature spike forced Crocetti to be withdrawn. The dual Group One winner has been off the scene since being unplaced in The Quokka (1200m) in Perth in late April, and he had been due to step out for his first start of the season in this season’s $120,000 sprint feature. A brilliant exhibition gallop at Ellerslie last Saturday stamped him as the one to beat. But Wednesday morning’s setback has put Crocetti’s racetrack…
In-form stayer set for Ellerslie return
Final Return has raced creditably in strong company at Ellerslie without major success and will be back there on New Year’s Day in a bid to break through. The New Plymouth-based stayer has regularly tripped north and collected four placings on the course, including a third in the Gr.3 Avondale Cup (2400m) earlier this year. Final Return has another visit on his immediate program for a crack at the Gr.3 Queen Elizabeth II Cup (2400m) on January 1 after finishing fourth in the 2025 edition of the event. “He hits…
Williamson taking three to Alexandra Park
By Jonny Turner The silver lining for star filly Captains Mistress is that the timing could be right for her, now. The three-year-old is part of a three-horse Southland attack that Nathan Williamson is preparing for the upcoming Auckland carnival. Hidden Talent and Ruby Roe will also head north and attempt to put Alexandra Park Group 1 titles next to their names, just like their stablemate already has. Spring setbacks meant Captains Mistress went into her last start in the Group 1 New Zealand Oaks with just one conditioning run.…
Scheffler tees off at Timaru on Wednesday
By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk He’s named after the world’s best golfer Scottie Scheffler but trainer Jessica Young-Grant is putting a lid on expectations ahead of her colt’s debut at Timaru on Wednesday. Scheffler, an American Ideal two-year-old, lines up in Race 6, the Brosnan Transport Passing Lane Mobile Pace (5.21pm). “He has a lovely attitude, he’s such a gem,” says Young-Grant, “and we think he’ll be a really nice horse … eventually.” But for now the youngster’s a bit of a project. He won a workout…