#Mark Purdon

Akuta (Bettor's Delight), the reigning New Zealand two-year-old of the year, and his co-trainer Mark Purdon made a big statement when taking out the time-honoured Hannon Memorial on Sunday afternoon (Sep. 18) in Oamaru. While the 2600m journey was a sedate affair (3:20.1) and the second slowest Hannon since 2005, the manner in which in Akuta was…

Here are five horses to back for the first Group 1 Grand Prix harness meeting at Addington, which starts at 12.15pm today. 1: Muscle Mountain (R8, No 1) Only one of trotting's big three turns up for this Group 1, and he should lead and win. The last time Muscle Mountain was in a sprint field of similar quality (no Sundees Son or Bolt For…

Champion trainer Emma Stewart didn't know which horses she would run in the Inter Dominion series a month ago, now she's on the verge of a historic five runners in the Group 1 pacing final. Stewart and partner Clayton Tonkin's focus has long been young horses, but their dominance through the first two nights of this Inter Dominion has been…

If Ben Hope's drive behind Muscle Mountain was the best losing drive of Cup and Show week, harness racing legend, Mark Purdon, produced the best winning drive of the week to secure Group One victory for he and Self Assured (Bettor's Delight) in the $200000 New Zealand Pacing Free For All. The world champion reinsman looked to be in a hopeless…

Harness racing's Millwood Nike (Bettor's Delight) has stamped herself as an exceptional young horse with a massive future having today, achieved her seventh win from seven starts. She's adaptable too, able to handle both travelling, and racing on left and right handed tracks, with ease. She looked very good winning in Auckland earlier in the year…

It's the second Tuesday in November and that means it's New Zealand Trotting Cup day at Addington. But with no such restrictions, it's time to glam up, try to pick a winner and keep safe under the Christchurch sun on one of the best days of Christchurch's social calendar. Tuesday's big race is arguably the most open field in the last decade, so…

Due to the Covid-19 Delta outbreak, New Zealand Trotting Cup organisers had to make the unfortunate call to host harness racing's big day without a crowd. Much like Melbourne's'crowdless cup' last year, attendance at Tuesday's New Zealand Trotting Cup will be limited to members, corporate partners, owners and workers, with no public…

Leading Pacing Sire: Bettor's Delight | 9 winners Leading Pacing Broodmare Sire: American Ideal & Christian Cullen | 3 winners Leading Trotting Sire: Majestic Son & Love You | 3 winners Leading Trotting Broodmare Sire: Sundon | 4 winners I'm dead set running out of things to say when it comes to Bettor's Delight! Last week we discussed how'the…

Canterbury harness racing heads to Addington tomorrow night (Oct 6.) and while some of the stars on the track will be racing at Methven later in the week, the meeting has attracted some firepower of its own. Heats of the Sires Stakes two-year-old series for the boys and the girls are to be contested, and so too another heat of the Nevele R Fillies…

Twenty-eight years after he first won Down Under's biggest trotting event with Diamond Field - and 16 years since his most recent - the driver has a shot to win his fifth title with Bolt For Brilliance. by Adam Hamilton More than 28 years after champion driver Tony Herlihy won his first Inter Dominion, he thinks he has the horse to win Down Under's…

A slimmed-down Alta Wiseguy (Mach Three) showed he is ready for the races when beating some of pacing big guns at the Rangiora harness racing trials on Wednesday (Aug 31). And that was enough to convince co-trainer Steve Telfer the speedster can head to the Avon City Ford Cup at Addington next week. Alta Wiseguy led throughout in the 2600m standing…