The plundering of Australia’s greatest races by our Kiwi cousins continued at Moonee Valley’s farewell meeting last night when Bondy led all the way to take out the $400,000 BIG6 Hunter Cup. Having watched both the Miracle Mile and SEW-Eurodrive Victoria Cup titles disappear across the ditch...
A massive crowd tonight converged on Moonee Valley to give the now former home of Victorian harness racing an appropriate send-off. More than 15,000 people attended the final meeting ever run at the venue that first hosted harness racing on October 30, 1976 and were treated to one of the best night’s...
Sundons Gift secured his place among the pantheon of Australasian trotting greats with SEW-Eurodrive Inter Dominion Trotting Championship success at Moonee Valley on Saturday night. The Chris Lang-trained-and-driven champion became the first Australian-trained horse to win Australasia’s premier...
Such was the buzz that surrounded the subsequent Alabar Victoria Derby heat wins of Major Bronski and Lincoln Royal last Friday night it would be easy to forget just how easily Lanercost disposed of his rivals in the opening preliminary of the series. Untroubled to lead from the inside alley, Darrel...
With a name that literally translates as “dark beast” and a personality that once saw him known as “Michelle’s mad trotter”, Bete Noire is the horse least likely in more ways than one. But despite his unflattering monikers and infamous history, the Michelle Manning trained...
It’s almost two years since Tanabi Bromac’s brilliant victory in the Alabar Victoria Derby stamped him as a horse of the future. Fast-forward to Saturday night and that future is here as Keith Cotchin’s once precocious sit-sprinter lines up in the toughest staying test in Australian...
He may be a Melbourne-owned expatriate Kiwi, but emerging five-year-old trotter Kasyanov will be draped Queensland colours if victorious in Saturday night’s $250,000 SEW-Eurodrive Inter Dominion final at Mooney Valley. Confused? Don’t be. It’s just that as the only non-Victorian trained...
Who dares wins. It’s the motto of nine elite special forces units around the world and may soon be shared by Dubbo trainer Barry Lew after Karloo Mick drew ideally in one for the $400,000 BIG6 Hunter Cup this Saturday night at Moonee Valley. Originally dubious about running his cult pacer over...
A capacity BIG6 Hunter Cup field of 14 will farewell Moonee Valley when the $400,000 Group 1 is run this Saturday night. The field for the feature event of the last night of harness racing at the Moonee Ponds circuit was finalised this afternoon when the barrier draw was conducted at the Caduceus Club...
Who said the SEW-Eurodrive Inter Dominion Trotting Championship was a Chris Lang benefit? The master Nagambie trainer won a semi final with Sundons Gift, but he was also left shaking his head when Skyvalley went down at the shortest possible TAB price - $1.04 - in the opening 2710-metre qualifier on...
Bondy flashed his BIG6 Hunter Cup bona fides with a track record win in last Saturday night’s $20,000 Sky Racing Pure Steel at Ballarat. The Kiwi gelding enhanced what was already a staggering standing start record when he mile-rated 2:01.6 in the 2710-metre event. The David Butt-trained eight-year-old...
Mark Peace was a content man following Saturday night’s $125,000 PETstock Ballarat Pacing Cup. The Whittlesea trainer-driver’s belief in Cincinnati Kid has never wavered and the former Kiwi entire repaid him in spades when he recorded his maiden Barastoc Grand Circuit success. “That...
The Alabar Victoria Derby heats did little to diminish the popular belief that Queensland holds the key to the series. Luke McCarthy’s boom colt For A Reason might have suffered his first defeat of the season, but Lanercost and Major Bronski exerted their class in their respective $20,000 qualifiers...
Mr Feelgood is yet to win as favourite in Australia, but the American import again heads the market for tomorrow night's PETstock Ballarat Cup (2710m). TAB Sportsbet installed the defending Inter Dominion champion the $3.80 favourite for the $125,000 Group 1 event that is the feature of night two of...
Three months, 10 starts, one track record and a tick over $100,000 later, Our Malabar is back from a staggeringly successful Perth campaign. And trainer-driver Lance Justice thinks he’s ready to avenge his luckless defeat in last year’s PETstock Ballarat Cup. Sixth in last year’s edition,...
Rising stars Mister Zion and Sammy Maguire were among the big winners at the PETstock Ballarat Pacing Cup barrier draw, conducted live on Sport 927 on Wednesday morning. Four-year-old Mister Zion, who took his record to 12 wins from 19 runs with a last-start win in the Group 1 South Australian Pacing...
One of the biggest celebrations Victorian harness racing is ever likely to see is now just days away with the 2010 Sky Racing Nights Of Glory to commence this Friday night. The $1.38 million three-night carnival is a collection of the sport’s most famous races and carries increased significance...
Five Barastoc Grand Circuit winners headline the list of nominations for the feature race on the opening weekend of the 2010 Sky Racing Nights Of Glory. Be Good Johnny, Mister Swinger, Mister Zion, Mr Feelgood and Smoken Up are the elite-level winners among 23 entries for Saturday night's $125,000 PETstock...
The Ouyen Trotters Cup isn’t the most prestigious race on the Victorian harness calendar, but it has proven a crucial one for Red Samurai. Victory in the $10,000 event at Tabcorp Park on January 15 secured the Clinton Welsh-trained seven-year-old the last spot in the SEW-Eurodrive Inter Dominion...
Superstar Chris Lang-trained duo Sundons Gift and Skyvalley head the rankings for next year’s SEW-Eurodrive Inter Dominion Trotting Championship, which were released on December 23. Defending Inter Dominion champion Sundons Gift holds the edge over his five-year-old stablemate, who secured second...
The return to a Saturday night timeslot for the BIG6 Hunter Cup has been hailed a success by Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) despite the weather and bushfires which prevailed on the day. After being run on a Sunday afternoon for the past three years, the nation’s richest handicap returned to its...
He’s won the United States’ biggest race and now Mr Feelgood has one of Australia’s biggest features in the bag following a stirring win in Saturday night’s $400,000 Group 1 BIG6 Hunter Cup at Moonee Valley. The boom American import, winner of America’s iconic Little Brown...
It was the race harness fans had waited for and Saturday night’s Technyflex Inter Dominion Trotting Championship Grand Final didn’t disappoint with Sundons Gift and One Over Kenny fighting out the $250,000 Group 1 event. The best from either side of the Tasman gave the strong Moonee Valley...
Captain Joy confirmed his status as Australia’s premier three-year-old when he creamed a quality field to win the $150,000 Alabar Victoria Derby at Moonee Valley on Saturday night. The Susan Hunter-trained star secured the third Group 1 of his brief-but-glittering career when he continued the outstanding...
Three Group 1 races will be run at Moonee Valley tomorrow night, but the two most intriguing runners of the night come up in a couple of the support races on the 10-event card. Lance Justice will unveil his latest boom Kiwi import when Ohoka Utah steps out in the PETstock…Part Of Your Family 4YO...
Alabar Victoria Derby success with Hung Jury tomorrow night would be without doubt Joe Pace’s biggest thrill in harness racing. But this weekend’s involvement in the $150,000 Group 1 event at Moonee Valley as a trainer won’t be the only time he has taken part in Australia’s oldest...
If experience counts for anything in tomorrow night’s $250,000 Group 1 Technyflex Inter Dominion Trotting Championship Final, Whatsundermykilt is the horse they all have to beat. Last year’s runner-up Will Trapper and beaten favourite One Over Kenny might be among the Kiwi’s rivals...
BIG6 Hunter Cup Day brings back fond memories for Harness Racing New South Wales director Rob Nalder. The prominent owner experienced one of his biggest thrills in harness racing when About To Rock scored an injury-defying win in the 2006 Cup. Nalder might not have a runner in this year’s $400,000...
Regardless what happens in Saturday night’s $150,000 Group 1 Alabar Victoria Derby, Broadways Best has already vindicated the decision of connections to take on the boys. The only filly to have contested a Derby heat since 1997, the Shannon McLean-trained daughter of Village Jasper booked her spot...
Chris Lang doesn’t have anything against his brother Gavin, but he hopes to help top Kiwi reinsman Anthony Butt get one back on his older sibling in Saturday night’s Technyflex Inter Dominion Trotting Championship decider. The Nagambie trainer-driver has employed Butt, who gifted Gavin the...
He has a long way to go to reach the dizzy heights of virtual stablemate Blacks A Fake, but I Am Sam is likely to achieve something the three-time Inter Dominion winner didn’t in Saturday night’s BIG6 Hunter Cup. If betting markets retain anything like their current shape when the race is...
He might be a Kiwi now based in Western Australia, but the loudest BIG6 Hunter Cup cheer could be reserved for a Power Of Tara win. The Greg Harper-trained gelding has been the subject of a good old-fashioned plunge and will make some punters very happy if he gets the job done in tomorrow night’s...
Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) has today announced that it has modified its pre-race security for the $400,000 BIG6 Hunter Cup, to be run this Saturday night at Moonee Valley, owing to the extreme weather forecast on the day of the race. Under the conditions of the nation’s richest handicap, all...
Surrendering favouritism for Saturday night's $400,000 BIG6 Hunter Cup in light of yesterday's barrier draw could be a blessing for Kiwi superstar Changeover. Since Victoria's toughest event reverted to a standing start affair in 1994, only once has the favourite saluted. That was in 1996 when $4.50...
You'd need a crowbar to get him out of the cart of Captain Joy, but Gavin Lang doesn't subscribe to the belief that Saturday night's Alabar Victoria Derby is a one-horse race following yesterday's barrier draw. Most experts declared the $150,000 Group 1 over as a contest when last year's Breeders Crown...
Australia versus New Zealand is what the Inter Dominion is all about and that's why harness racing fans are licking their lips in anticipation of Saturday night's trotting championship decider at Moonee Valley. Leading the charge from the green and gold corner is reigning Australian Trotting of the Year...
A capacity field of 14 will face the starter when the $400,000 Group 1 BIG6 Hunter Cup is run this Saturday night at Moonee Valley. The field was finalised this afternoon when the barrier draw for the feature event of the Sky Channel Nights Of Glory was conducted at a luncheon at the RACV Club. Joint...
Barastoc Grand Circuit leader Mister Swinger has been re-handicapped to 10 metres for this Saturday night's $400,000 BIG6 Hunter Cup at Moonee Valley. Harness Racing Victoria's handicapping and field selection panel met this morning to discuss the weekend's feature racing and have elected to penalise...
One Over Kenny took the biggest step yet towards redeeming herself for last year’s miserable Inter Dominion campaign when she won a semi final of the 2009 series at Ballarat on Saturday night. There was no repeat of 11 months ago, when she went down as a $1.20 favourite in an Inter Dominion semi,...
Mister Swinger exploded his way to the top of the Grand Circuit table with a dazzling win in Saturday night’s PETstock Ballarat Pacing Cup. The Geoff Webster-trained-and-driven star made it back-to-back victories on Australasian harness racing’s showcase circuit when he jumped out of the...
Captain Joy showed why he was an odds-on favourite for the Alabar Victoria Derby final before the heats were even run when he made a one-act affair of his qualifier at Ballarat on Saturday night. The Susan Hunter-trained youngster emphatically secured his place in this Saturday night’s $150,000...
He won’t be lining up when the BIG6 Hunter Cup is run, but Few Good Men enhanced his status as one of Victoria’s top standing start performers with a dashing win in Saturday night's $20,000 The Sky Channel Pure Steel at Ballarat. The gutsy five-year-old backed up his 1:55.5 track record win...
Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) has announced an exciting promotion for BIG6 Hunter Cup night under the auspices of its new ownership initiative www.raceapacer.com.au. Every adult attending the BIG6 Hunter Cup – which headlines the final night of the Sky Channel Nights Of Glory at Moonee Valley on...
Tomorrow night's PETstock Ballarat Pacing Cup field is down to 10 runners after Ultimate Mark was this morning scratched from the $125,000 Group 1 event. Trainer Andy Gath informed Harness Racing Victoria that the talented six-year-old was slightly lame and would not be fit to take his place in the 2710-metre...
Russell Jack is yet to be convinced Thepowerofhealing is a legitimate Inter Dominion Trotting Championship contender, but his doubt has been eroded by the high rating given to one of the improving mare’s rivals. The Shepparton trainer points to Skyvalley’s standing in TAB Sportsbet’s...
Shannon McLean was surprised to learn that his classy filly Broadways Best will be the first female to take part in the Alabar Victoria Derby in more than a decade when she lines up in the first of three heats on Saturday night at Ballarat. The daughter of Village Jasper will become the first filly since...
It took a little bit longer than expected, but One Over Kenny is in Victoria and ready to atone for last year's forgettable attempt at Inter Dominion glory. The superstar Kiwi mare had her initial flight to Melbourne delayed after a fire in the plane's cockpit before takeoff, but eventually got out of...
About the only person in Victoria not complaining about this week’s heatwave is Western Australia’s Noel Keiley. The Byford trainer is in town for the Alabar Victoria Derby and he suspects he brought the weather, along with his boom colt Crown Bromac. “That’s what they’ve...
Decorated Jasper’s trainer Paul Rowse has a hectic night ahead, but he could be the envy of his $125,000 Group 1 PETstock Ballarat Pacing Cup competitors on Saturday night. While his rivals are getting anxious in the hours leading up to one of only three Grand Circuit races held in Victoria each...
Dismiss reigning Australian Trotter of the Year, Sundons Gift, as an Inter Dominion Trotting Championship contender at your peril. That’s the message to punters from the dual Group 1 winner’s trainer Chris Lang, who believes his star charge remains a chance of providing him with back-to-back...
Alabar Victoria Derby time is meant to be an exciting part of the season for champion reinsman Gavin Lang. Instead, the series that culminates with a $150,000 Group 1 final at Moonee Valley on Saturday night, February 7, has the potential to provide the Melton master with one of his biggest headaches...
Not many of Victoria’s top races have escaped the grasp of Kiwi brothers Tim and Anthony Butt. Trainer Tim has won Victoria’s biggest race, the Hunter Cup, with Mister D G and most of that state’s trotting features, generally on multiple occasions, through the deeds of champions Lyell...
The re-birth of Victorian harness racing’s premier carnival is complete with the launch of the revamped Sky Channel Nights Of Glory by Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) today. The Sky Channel Nights Of Glory is a collection of the sport’s most famous races and returns to the spotlight in 2009...
A stunning victory at Geelong on Friday night was enough to secure in-form Victorian mare Thepowerofhealing the final spot in the 2009 Inter Dominion Trotting Championship. The race to secure a berth in next Saturday night’s Inter Dominion semi finals at Ballarat reached its climax today with the...
The reported king's ransom that was handed over for Mr Feelgood could turn out to be money well spent following the American import’s win in Saturday night’s $50,000 Group 2 Neatline Homes Shepparton Gold Cup. The Grinfromeartoear entire rocketed to favouritism for the $400,000 Group 1 Hunter...
Leading Barastoc Grand Circuit contender Divisive heads the list of nominations for the PETstock Ballarat Cup, which closed this afternoon. The Peter Rixon-trained gun was one of 22 entries for the $125,000 Group 1 feature that is the headline attraction of night one of the Sky Channel Nights Of Glory...
The path to Inter Dominion redemption lifts a cog for Will Trapper tomorrow night with the running of the Cochran Trotters Cup at Shepparton. The John Noonan-trained gelding, who ran second to Galleons Sunset in last year’s Inter Dominion final at Moonee Valley, will round out his preparation for...
The Alabar Victoria Derby might have lost top fancy Bonavista Bay on Monday, but it will gain an adequate replacement when boom Western Australian colt Crown Bromac arrives in town tomorrow. Trainer Noel Keiley today confirmed that the son of American sire McArdle would contest the Derby, which begins...
The NMIT Yarra Valley Vicbred Trophy for C1 performers isn’t renowned as a traditional Alabar Victoria Derby lead-up, but it will play the role of one tomorrow. Star Victorian three-year-olds Living On Fire and Garnet River will both round out their preparations for the Derby heats, to be run at...
Changeover emphasised why he is favourite for next month’s Hunter Cup when he overcame a tricky barrier to account for a quality field in Saturday night’s Integrating Technology Bendigo Cup (2650m). The Kiwi superstar brought a smile to the face of the punter who on Friday plonked $3000 on...
Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) has today announced that leading natural remedies company, Natural Health New Zealand, will sponsor the 2009 Inter Dominion Trotting Championship Grand Final under their product brand Technyflex Equine. Technyflex Equine is a natural arthritis treatment for horses that alleviates...
The race to secure a berth in the 2009 Inter Dominion Trotting Championship reached another important milestone today with the release of the second rankings by Harness Racing Victoria. HRV’s handicapping and field selection panel have cast an eye across the performances of nominees since the release...
Fifty-seven squaregaiters remain in the running to claim this year’s Inter Dominion Trotting Championship following the closure of first acceptances with Harness Racing Victoria on Monday. Only seven of the initial 64 nominations were not paid up for, with the only big name withdrawal being Viva...
Harness Racing Victoria's handicapping and field selection panel has today elected not to re-handicap any runners for the Hunter Cup after the weekend's features. The wins of Power Of Tara (Fremantle Cup), Mister Swinger (SA Cup) and I Am Sam (Horsham Cup) were those that came under the most scrutiny...
Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) has announced that the nation’s premier entertainment and gambling group, Tabcorp, will sponsor the 2009 Hunter Cup. Australia’s richest handicap harness race will be run at Moonee Valley on Saturday night, February 7 – the grand finale of the Sky Channel...
Defending champion Galleons Sunset heads the list of first rankings for the 2009 Inter Dominion Trotting Championship released by Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) today. A total of 67 horses were entered for the revered trotting series when nominations closed on Monday and all have been allocated a ranking...
TAB Sportsbet have today opened their first fixed odds markets on the Hunter Cup and Inter Dominion Trotting Championship which will feature during the 2009 Sky Channel Nights Of Glory. The cup and Inter Dominion grand final will both be run on Saturday night, February 7 at Moonee Valley alongside the...
Five horses have today been allotted handicaps for the 2009 Hunter Cup by Harness Racing Victoria’s handicapping and field selection panel following yesterday’s closure of nominations. New Zealand Cup winner Changeover, Miracle Mile winner Divisive, Auckland Cup winner Gotta Go Cullen, Treuer...
New Zealand’s defending champion Galleons Sunset and reigning Australian Trotter of the Year Sundons Gift headline the nominations for the 2009 Inter Dominion Trotting Championship. A total of 64 horses were nominated for Australasia’s most revered trotting series when entries closed on Monday...
Boom North American import Mr Feelgood heads the list of entries for the 2009 Hunter Cup following the closure of nominations with Harness Racing Victoria on Monday. A total of 47 pacers have been entered for Australia’s richest and most prestigious handicap which will be conducted on Saturday...
