Category: Harness

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk  Surely they can’t be a more popular winner at Kaikoura today than Rachmaninov.  The veteran trotter, having his 289th start, outstayed his rivals to win the Smartpanel Construction Ltd Trot.   It was his second start in two days, his 12th career win and it pushed him over $200,000 in career earnings. “Everyone’s so stoked with him,” says co-breeder, co-owner and trainer Trevor Grant. “He really is everyone’s favourite horse isn’t he? After a safe beginning Rachmaninov went up to sit parked with…

Europe has flexed its muscle on day two of the World Driving Championship in Kaikoura. Firstly it was Jaap van Rijn from the Netherlands who took out Heat 4 and then it was Germany’s Michael Nimczyk who prevailed in the second and final heat of the day with the Matt Purvis-trained Flying Bird. Their victories completed a hat-trick for the Europeans, following Italian Giampaolo Minnucci’s win in the third heat yesterday. The opening two heats were taken out by Australia’s Gary Hall Junior. In today’s heats It’s Tough produced a…

Jaap van Rijn (The Netherlands) has registered his first win at the World Driving Championship. And it was a powerhouse performance at the South Bay race course in Kaikoura in heat 4 of the WDC.  Van Rijn made a mid race move with favourite It’s Tough and from there it was all over. The Robert and Jenna Dunn-trained four year old has been in outstanding form and just powered away from his opposition to win effortlessly. It was his fifth win in his last six starts. For van Rijn it…

Two-time champion Swayzee is out of the IRT New Zealand Trotting Cup. The Jason Grimson-trained star was vying to become just the fourth horse to win three New Zealand Cups in a row but today he’s been officially withdrawn from the $1m feature at Addington Raceway on Tuesday, November 11. The news was not unexpected. Over the weekend it was reported he had a suspected cold and was scratched from a race at Menangle. He also missed last month’s Victoria Cup with a bowel infection. Australia’s two starters in the…

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk   Australian representative Gary Hall Junior will take a 15 point lead into the second day of the World Driving Championship at Kaikoura on Monday. On Sunday the multiple Group 1 winning driver from Perth had almost the perfect start to WDC 2025 with two wins and a second from the opening three heats. He has 44 points, with Italian Giampaolo Minnucci second on 29, and former world champion Pierre Vercruysse third on 21. New Zealand’s representative Blair Orange is sixth equal on…

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk  The official welcome has been held in Christchurch today for the international field of drivers here for the World Driving Championship. The function at the Commodore Hotel featured a traditional powhiri and was attended by eight of the 10 drivers involved, their entourages plus representatives from HRNZ and other interested parties. The two drivers not there were Gary Hall Junior who had some passport dramas and a delayed departure from Western Australia while American whizz kid Brett Beckwith was due later this afternoon. …