Tim O'Connor picks his favourite bits from the harness racing week that was and the one ahead...
THE HERO
The Birchip Mallee Bull Cup meeting.
You’re probably sick of hearing me bang on about it, but it’s incredible how this day can continue to live up to the hype each and every year.
And while the weather ruined the final three races on Sunday’s card, the legendary after-party certainly didn’t disappoint.
It was yet another brilliant event put on by a great club.
Bring on 2026!
HOW GOOD WAS...
Great to see legendary thoroughbred trainer John Hawkes enjoy cross-code success at Melton on Saturday night.
Hawkes is a part-owner of Seathestars, who thrashed his rivals in the Nutrien Equine Pace.
The horse is trained by Geoff Webster and was driven by Jordan Leedham.
Hawkes is estimated to have trained over 5000 winners, with more than 100 at Group 1 level.
CAN'T WAIT FOR THIS!
Mentioned this last week, but it’s worth another shout.
The Tom Hogan Charlton Cup Day Punt Off will be a great side show to the action on the track this Sunday, and I’ll be competing on behalf of Harness Racing Victoria.
The Punt Off sees entrants pay a $1000 fee, with $250 of that placed in an overall prize pool. The other $750 is bet across the day’s card and the punter with the highest balance after the final event is declared the winner.
Any winnings I can manage will be donated to the Good Friday Appeal.
KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR...
A handful of Victorian raiders will look to book their spot in the Tasmania Cup Final this Sunday in Hobart.
Ewa Justice claimed her maiden Group 1 win with Modern Bliss in last year’s feature and will partner her father’s horse Helluva in this weekend’s second heat.
Other Vics engaged are Collective Works (Carson Millar/Jack Laugher), Arggghhh (David Miles/Ricky Duggan), Oliver Dan (Emma Stewart/Allan McDonough) and Heza Punk Rocker (Emma Stewart/James Herbertson).
The 2025 Tasmania Cup Final will be run on March 22.
POP THIS IN YOUR DIARY
Another Saturday night, another Treble jackpot at Melton.
$10,000 has been added to the pool this weekend, with a projected pot of $50,000. Now, all you’ve got to do is find the winners of races six, seven and eight.
ONE FOR THE BLACK BOOK
Emily Vincent.
Adam Stephens’ mare was a real eye-catcher when fourth last Saturday night behind Give Dave A Wave after being dragged back to last approaching the home straight.
She drew poorly before that and ran last, but is certainly going well and shapes as a coming winner.
SOMETHING TO PONDER...
Would a slot race concept elevate Birchip’s once-a-year meeting to another level?
This idea – and I’m certainly not claiming it as my own - has really got me excited.
We can debate the specifics later, but basically we’re talking about a pay-to-play event where horses are hand-selected by slot holders to race for a slice of a big prize pool. Let’s say 10 runners, $10,000 shares and a purse of $100,000.
I had originally thought an open-class event would be great to entice high-profile horses to the meeting, but further consideration has me thinking it might be better suited to lower-rated pacers. This would keep with the theme of the meeting and provide a great opportunity for some trainers, drivers and owners that aren’t blessed with the stock to compete at the elite level.
Hosting the slot race at Birchip means the crowd is sorted, but it could be amplified with marquees for slot holder groups lining the inside of the home straight and even more off-track entertainment before, during and after the meeting.
Sounds good, doesn’t it? Now all we need is a name… and thanks to Darren Carroll, we have it. The Running of the Bulls!
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The opinions expressed in The Forum are those of the author and may not be attributed to or represent policies of Harness Racing Victoria, which is the state authority and owner of thetrots.com.au.