The best horses in tonight’s $60,000 Flying Mile at Cambridge may not prove to be the best bets.

Because while the likes of Don’t Stop Dreaming and Merlin can undoubtedly win what is the final lead-up to next week’s $1million Race by Grins their connections admit the mega race looms large on the horizon.

Tonight’s pacing feature and to a lesser extent the Trotter’s Flying Mile are both lead-ups to the far richer slot races just eight days later. 

Champion pacing filly Millwood Nike has entered the elitist of clubs by winning the New Zealand Harness Horse of the Year title.

Up for grabs: One crown.

Condition: Well worn, plenty of former owners.

Apply: In person at Alexandra Park, Menangle, Cambridge and Addington.

The career of one of Australasia’s best pacers hangs in the balance with the shock news Akuta will not race this year.

Star NZ trotter Muscle Mountain will be staying put at least for now.

The giant multiple group-1 winner is back in work after a setback ruled him out of the NZ Trotting Free-For-All on Grand Prix Day at Addington but driver Ben Hope says the intended Australian trip for the Great Southern Star is off.

Don’t Stop Dreaming may have sealed his open class credentials at Alexandra Park on Sunday night but that doesn’t mean he will become a big-time regular just yet.

Because co-trainer Nathan Purdon says while Don’t Stop Dreaming is good enough to race in a race like the open class A$500,000 Hunter Cup in a month they will target four-year-old races while they can.

Champion trainer Mark Purdon is adamant Dont Stop Dreaming is ready to step up to the big time at Alexandra Park tonight but whether than means beating stablemate Akuta is another matter.

Dont Stop Dreaming races in open class for the first time in tonight’s $60,000 Lincoln Farms Franklin Cup, the highlight of a New Year’s Eve meeting far smaller than it used to be at The Park.

In a sport of great comebacks few, maybe none, can match Ricky May.

The enormously popular Mid-Canterbury horseman heads to Invercargill today to partner favourite Beach Ball in the $110,000 Ascot Park Hotel Invercargill Cup, the only group 1 race in New Zealand this weekend.

The racing career of unbeaten New Zealand pacing superstar Millwood Nike could be saved.

Monday was D-Day for the three-year-old glamour filly who was pulled out of the New Zealand Oaks as the $1.20 favourite two weeks ago after showing signs of lameness.

New Zealand trainers Barry Purdon and Scott Phelan pulled off the ultimate team work double at Addington yesterday.

The pair capped a wonderful last 14 months at the home of Canterbury harness racing when Merlin led throughout to win Garrard NZ Pacing Derby on Grand Prix Day a race after stablemate Duchess Megxit won the group 1 Ace Of Diamonds for juvenile pacing fillies.

Graham Dwyer feels like he already won.

While that feeling won’t pay off in cold hard cash for the punters who back favourite Not As Promised in Sunday’s $110,000 King Of The North NZ Trotting Derby, for Dwyer just being in New Zealand for the classic as as good as a victory.

Oscar Bonavena may have been handed a shot at a most unlikely NZ Trotter of the Year title at Addington on Sunday.

There wouldn’t have been a day in 2023 that Muscle Mountain hasn’t been considered our best trotter and he still is but he will now miss Sunday’s $110,000 Livamol NZ Trotting Free-For-All after a slight setback and won’t race again this year.

Two-time New Zealand Cup hero Copy That is off to Australia again but not to race this time.

 The wonderful pacer missed his shot at a NZ Cup three-peat when he went sore with a knee issue and potential other concerns a few weeks before the Cup but trainer Ray Green says things are looking up.

New Zealand’s first squaregaiting slot race is confirmed and already has its first position filled.

On face value Addington’s iconic Show Day meeting yesterday looked like any other major race meeting.

It was anything but.

Peruse the results and you would see superstar trainers Mark and Nathan Purdon trained the winners of both the $300,000 Dominion with Oscar Bonavena and the $200,000 New Zealand Pacing Free-For-All with Self Assured.

A gear change has awoken the giant that is Muscle Mountain and it should be enough for him to overcome his second line starting point in today’s $300,000 Dominion at Addington.

And it helps that for all the depth of the field his main dangers have at least the slightest of doubts over them.

New Zealand’s most important and historic harness race got a shot of Aussie adrenalin at maybe the perfect time when Swayzee smashed the locals in the $750,000 IRT New Zealand Cup at Addington on Tuesday.

The New South Wales pacer won the tactical early battle over Canterbury favourite Akuta and was able to stroll to the lead after a lap, from where he never looked like being beaten.

Big fields and plenty of the favourites copping difficult draws have produced a New Zealand Trotting Cup day at Addington with more value than usual.

 Unbeaten filly Millwood Nike may start the only odds-on favourite all day so here is a race-by-race look at the best plays on harness racing’s biggest day.