By Jonny Turner Wag Star brings the best form reference to today’s Transport Services Ltd Wairio Cup, now he just has to live up to it. The third placegetter in the recent Group 1 Invercargill Cup will start a hot favourite ($1.80) at Central Southland Raceway on Sunday. The 20m backmarker comes into the Wairio Cup on the back of a very narrow second in the Riverton Cup behind The Big Lebowski. Trainer-driver Craig Ferguson saw both positives and negatives in the performance. “He was travelling like the winner but…
Author: NZHarnessNews
Sam Thornley with nine drives at Methven today
By Mike Love Canterbury trainer-driver Sam Thornley has several each-way chances at Methven today for the Hororata meeting at Mt Harding racecourse. Thornley has nine drives in total, six of which are offering each-way odds under $10. The first of those comes in Race 2, the Peter Craig Memorial Trot over 2400m, where Neil William ($5.50FF) lines up for trainer Sam Payne. “He should be a good chance. He’s shown a bit of ability in his first couple of races. He just got a bit lost in front last…
Goodman taking winning form into Winton on Sunday
By Jonny Turner Georgia Goodman will be out to keep up her winning form on Transport Services Ltd Wairio Cup Day at Winton. The junior driver comes into Wairio’s big meeting on Sunday after notching the second win of her career in the sulky with Beaudiene Quick Step at Ascot Park last week. Goodman links up with two serious winning chances at Central Southland Raceway, one of which clashes with her last start winner. The reinswoman will combine with the Alister Black trained Captain Amore on the back of his…
Wallis-Hackett gunning for more success at Alexandra Park tonight
By Michael Guerin The queen of trotting may have two impressive last-start winners heading to Alexandra Park tonight but she thinks her rep with the worst form line might end up being the punter’s friend. Michelle Wallis and husband Bernie Hackett had a career-best season last year when training 57 winners capped by Hillbilly Blues capturing the Group 1 National Trot on New Year’s Eve. Remarkably of those 57 wins, 55 came in trotting races with the majority at Alexandra Park where it feels like the stable wins a trotting…
Craig Thornley with each-way chances at Rangiora today
By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk Craig Thornley is literally hoping to go one better at Rangiora’s annual Waitangi Day meeting today. And that’s because three of the horses he’ll drive (Ma Belle Amie Franco, Waikaka and Moa Mojito) all finished second for him in their most recent starts. One of them in particular Ma Belle Amie Franco is heavily backed to get her maiden win. Trained by Steven McRae, Ma Belle Amie Franco is at $2 following her last start second at Wyndham on January 6. “She is…
Roydon Muscle could be “hard to catch” at Addington tonight
By Michael Guerin Some simple maths suggests Roydon Muscle can win the feature trot at Addington tonight. That is if trainer-driver Bob Butt’s prediction of what his stable runner is capable of is on the mark. Roydon Muscle is a relative newcomer to Butt’s care who after two disappointing performances at Nelson has been excellent in his subsequent two Addington starts. “We was working so well before Nelson I thought he had to be hard to beat up there but he didn’t race up to it,” explains Butt. “I thought…
Lincolns to the fore at Alexandra Park
By Michael Guerin Nathan Delany can’t decide which one of the three-year-old pacers he takes to Alexandra Park is the best chance. But the goods news for the Pukekohe trainer and partner Ray Green is he thinks they can both win. Their stable have an army of talented young pacers in work including Sammy Lincoln (R2, No.3) and Lincoln Wave (R6, No.6) in early races at the shortened Auckland meeting tonight. The pair clashed at last Friday’s soaked Alex Park meeting and Lincoln Wave led throughout while Sammy Lincoln stormed…
Muscle Mountain huge hope to win fourth Summer Cup
By Michael Guerin Ben Hope says Muscle Mountain is ready to give punters what they want tonight and the way they want it too. The big boy returns after six weeks away from the races in the $40,000 Continental Summer Cup Trot at Addington, a race he has won three times before. There is no doubting Muscle Mountain is the best horse in tonight’s 1980m mobile as the winner of 39 races and over $1.1 million in stakes so the question punters taking the odds-on want to know is: is…
Racey Krusa looking to extend winning record at Oamaru on Sunday
By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk At what is now essentially his local track, in-form trotter Racey Krusa heads back to Oamaru this Sunday. The nine-year-old has turned into quite the “surprise package” since joining Amber Hoffman’s Waikouaiti Beach stable late last year, winning four of his five starts with her, and finishing third in the other. And it’s not just that he’s stringing the wins together – it’s the way he’s doing it. In his last start, at Oamaru on Wednesday January 21, Racey Krusa was nicely situated…
Aussie’s big three to square off in Cranbourne Cup
By Adam Hamilton Champion horseman Luke McCarthy could hardly contain his excitement after New Zealand Cup winner Kingman drew perfectly in gate one for Saturday night’s $150,000 Group 1 Cranbourne Cup (2555m). It is a huge advantage when he clashes for the first time in the same race with both Leap To Fame and Swayzee. Leap To Fame, who led throughout to beat Kingman into fourth spot in last Saturday night’s Group 2 Ballarat Cup, will start from gate four. Swayzee, winner of two NZ Cups and the reigning Hunter…