Retired Geelong businessman and hobby harness breeder and owner Gary Merlo is finding the annual yearling sales a splendid source of winners.
Merlo enjoyed a sensational 12 months in the sport in 2025 as the part-owner of two of the most exciting pacers in New Zealand namely, Republican Party and the two-year-old Freeze Frame, who won five Group 1’s between them.
Republican Party banked $525,794 from nine wins in 16 starts including the Auckland Cup, NZ Messenger, Invercargill Cup and the Roy Purdon Memorial, while Freeze Frame earned $161,410 from successes in the NZ Sires’ Stakes Final and the Group 3 Timaru Nursery.
Both were selected at the NZ yearling sales and are trained by champion Christchurch horseman Cran Dalgety.
Merlo had been introduced to Dalgety by close friend Kevin Clark 17 years earlier.
“Kevin bought a horse at the NZ sales called Double Happy. I took a share of him and Cran trained him. He won five races in NZ, then came over to Victoria to join the Tormey stable and won a further four races,” Merlo said.
Our Bettor Joy, winner of the Group 2 NZ Delightful Lady Classic, Master Moonlite, Gemma Mac, Shards In Manhattan and more recently Krug were other sales graduates part-owned by Merlo.
Krug won four Group 1’s including the NZ and Great Northern Derbies and more than $800,000 in stakemoney and was named the NZ 2YO Colt and 3YO Colt of the Year.
“Republican Party and Krug are the best two I’ve raced by far,” Merlo stated. “Master Moonlite won the Queensland Derby for Matt Craven beating Colt Thirty One.
“I’ve had more success in NZ than I have over here.”
Merlo’s introduction to harness racing ownership was through Goulburn Valley identity Rod ‘Dogs’ Booker back in 1978.
“I used to work in the bank and I was posted to Numurkah and boarded with Len Mitchell who raced a little horse called Brooklyn Smoke.
“I’d wanted to get into horse racing from my teenage days watching races and trials at Echuca and Len introduced me to Rod and a few of his mates.”
Merlo has experienced success in Victoria with Beau Pere, Twinkle Eyes, Lamandier, Ruebe Starbuck, Captain Tom, Just Incredible and the highly promising Can Be A Ruebe and Springfield River.
“I have three three-year-olds including two geldings by Tall Dark Stranger yet to race with Kyle Marshall,” he said.
On the breeding side, Merlo has bred three winners from the Art Major mare Fine Exception and three from Lauper, the dam of the brilliant last-to-first winner at the Maryborough twilight meeting on Sunday in Our True Colours.
“We’ve had a lot of fun in the sport. Racing horses is an alternative interest,” Merlo said.
- The three-year-old Charlene’s Delight, an $80,000 purchase at the Nutrien Equine Sydney yearling sale in 2024, broke through for his first win at Maryborough. Out of the dual Group 1 winner Carla’s Pixel, the gelding was the first leg of winning double for Bacchus Marsh breeders Shannon and Megan Nixon
- Madigan, who scored a brave fighting win in the Echuca Pacing Cup, was bred by John Mannix from the Bettor’s Delight mare Our Chelsea Girl NZ, the dam of five sub 2:00 winners from five live foals
- The online catalogue for the Australian Pacing Gold round of yearling sales can be accessed at apgold.com.au Hard copies are available from trotting clubs and leading stud farms
PHOTO: Claire Weston Photography.
