The Race by Grins

Last updated

The Race by Grins Mobile Pace
Listed race
LocationCambridge Racecourse
New Zealand
Inaugurated2022
Race type Standardbred - Flat racing
Race information
Distance2200m
TrackLeft-handed oval
Qualification3 year old and older pacers
PurseNZ $1,000,000 (2024)

The Race By Grins is a race for 3 year old and older harness horses run at Cambridge Raceway, New Zealand, by the Waikato Bay of Plenty Harness club. It is raced over 2200m from a mobile start and is a slot race.

Contents

History

The Race by Grins was first held in 2022. It involves each potential race entry (slot) being sold to a purchaser (slot holder) who secures a spot in the race for three years. The slot holder may then liaise with the trainers and owners of high quality racehorses that may potentially fill the slot and contest the race. The slot holders will enter into independent arrangements with the horse owners/trainers in regards the distribution of any prize money won.

In 2022, one of the horses was withdrawn prior to the fields being drawn. From 2023 the Race by Grins has a pool of horses available from which slot holders can select a replacement for any horse withdrawn prior to acceptance time. There will also be one emergency drawn in the field. [1]

Grins, the initial race sponsor is a ready-to-drink alcoholic beverage associated with New Zealand rugby representatives Stephen Donald, Anton Lienert-Brown and Damian McKenzie. [2] [3] [4]

It was intended to introduce a trotting version of the slot race in 2023 but this did not occur due to a lack of funding. [5] However, in 2024 an inaugural trotters slot event, the TAB Mobile Trot was held for a stake of $600,000 [6] The two slot races have attracted the best combined fields of New Zealand and Australian horses for many years. [7] [8] [9]

The 2024 edition was won by Merlin in a time of 2:35.1 which set a new New Zealand record for the 2200m journey beating the previous record of 2:35.4 by Ultimate Sniper in November 2019. [10]

Race results

The past winners of the race are as follows:

Year
Stake
Winner
Driver
Trainer(s)
Time
Second
Third
2024$1,000,000Merlin [11] Zachary ButcherBarry Purdon & Scott Phelan2:35.10Don't Stop DreamingKango
2023 [12] $1,000,000 Copy That [13] Blair OrangeRay Green [14] 2:36.3Old Town Road Self Assured
2022 [15] $ 862,500 Self Assured [16] Mark Purdon Mark Purdon & Hayden Cullen2:37.5Majestic CruiserSpankem

Other major races

See also

Related Research Articles

The Great Northern Derby is a Group 1 harness racing event for 3 year old standardbreds. It is a major event for 3 year old colts and geldings in New Zealand and currently run at Alexandra Park in Auckland, in March.

The AG Hunter Cup is a competition in harness racing. It is contested over 2,760 metres at Melton Entertainment Park in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was one of the world's richest handicap standing start events, but it is now contested under mobile start conditions. The race was formerly staged at Moonee Valley before Victoria's new home of harness racing was opened at Melton Entertainment Park.

Lord Module was a champion New Zealand-bred Standardbred racehorse who raced during the 1970s.

The New Zealand Cup for standardbred horses, also known as either the New Zealand Trotting Cup or the New Zealand Pacing Cup is a Group One (G1) harness race held annually by the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club at Addington Raceway in Christchurch, New Zealand.

Christian Cullen is a Standardbred stallion and was one of New Zealand's best pacers. Named after the New Zealand international rugby union player, Christian Cullen, he won 22 of his 31 starts, and $NZ1,249,150 in prize money. He is notable in that he won both the Auckland Pacing Cup and New Zealand Trotting Cup races, the richest harness races in New Zealand. A powerful and impressive stallion, he has been particularly successful at stud.

The New Zealand Pacing Free For All is a major New Zealand harness race. It is notable as it is a Group One championship sprint race and has been won by nearly every champion pacer in New Zealand.

The Auckland Pacing Cup which is sometimes referred to as the Auckland Trotting Cup or merely the Auckland Cup is a race held at Alexandra Park in Auckland, New Zealand for Standardbred horses. It is one of the two major harness races, along with the New Zealand Cup, held in New Zealand each year for the highest grade pacers. It is a Group 1 championship race and has been won by many of the champion pacers in New Zealand.

Harness racing in New Zealand is primarily a professional sport which involves pacing and trotting competitions for Standardbred racehorses. The difference is the horse's gait or running style:

Delightful Lady was a New Zealand Standardbred racemare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inter Dominion Trotting Championship</span>

The Inter Dominion Trotting Championship Grand Final was a race for trotters within the overall Inter Dominion series. The series is held each year, and is a harness racing competition for both trotters and pacers that has been contested since 1936 in Australia and New Zealand. The host of the series is rotated between the 6 harness racing states of Australia and the North and South Islands of New Zealand. However, in recent years the Trotting series has mainly been held in Victoria with other Australian states reluctant to host the series. It forms part of the overall Inter Dominion series for pacers and trotters.

The Dominion is a race held at the Addington Raceway each year in Christchurch, New Zealand for standardbred horses.

Anthony Butt is a driver of standardbred racehorses in Australia and New Zealand.

Mark Purdon is a driver and trainer of standardbred racehorses in New Zealand. He was associated with many champions and is one of the leading trainers and drivers of harness horses in New Zealand and Australasia. He was inducted into the Inter Dominion Hall of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inter Dominion Pacing Championship</span>

The Inter Dominion is a harness racing competition that has been contested since 1936 in Australia and New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inter Dominion Hall of Fame</span> Harness racing recognition organization

The Inter Dominion Hall of Fame is an organization created to recognise and honour those whose achievements have enriched the world of the Harness racing industry, particularly in the Inter Dominion series. The hall of fame was created to honor the standardbred annual races of the Inter Dominion which includes the Inter Dominion Pacing Championship and the Inter Dominion Trotting Championship. The races are held in a rotating cycle in Australia and New Zealand. The 2020 race is being held in New South Wales.

Monkey King is a leading New Zealand Standardbred racehorse. He is most noted for winning the New Zealand Trotting Cup and New Zealand Free-For-All double in two consecutive years, in 2009 and 2010, the first time this has ever been achieved. He also won the Miracle Mile Pace and the Auckland Trotting Cup in the 2009/10 season, as well as running second in the Inter Dominion Grand Final. As a result, he achieved the highest-earning season ever by a New Zealand pacer, and was crowned New Zealand Horse of the Year. These victories came after several top successes as a 3 and 4 year-old and consistently rating among the top horses in New Zealand over the following years. He was inducted to the Addington Harness Hall of Fame in 2019. He was at the time New Zealand's richest ever pacer with over $3,400,000 in stakes.

Terror To Love is a New Zealand standardbred racehorse. He is best known for being a three-time winner of the New Zealand Trotting Cup, in 2011, 2012 and 2013. He was trained by Graham and Paul Court.

Self Assured is a New Zealand Standardbred racehorse, notable for winning the New Zealand Trotting Cup in 2020 and the Auckland Trotting Cup in 2019 and 2022.

Bettor's Delight is a former champion American Standardbred race-horse and one of the World's greatest stud stallions.

Copy That is a New Zealand Standardbred racehorse, notable for winning the New Zealand Trotting Cup in 2021 and 2022.

References

  1. ↑ no-byline (2023-01-14). "Cambridge race gets bigger". Cambridge News. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
  2. ↑ "Grins get around The Race". www.hrnz.co.nz.
  3. ↑ "Spy: All Blacks hope to score big with their new RTD brand". NZ Herald. April 12, 2024.
  4. ↑ "Our Story". Grins.
  5. ↑ "TAB Trot Slot Holders Confirmed | Scoop News". www.scoop.co.nz.
  6. ↑ "Big plans in pipeline for The Race By Grins". www.hrnz.co.nz.
  7. ↑ Hamilton, Adam. "Hamilton: Slot races to reinvigorate harness racing". Harness Racing Victoria.
  8. ↑ "Australian invasion set for million dollar slot race". NZ Herald. 2024-04-12. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
  9. ↑ "NZ's richest ever harness race draws one of deepest fields in 25 years". NZ Herald. April 12, 2024.
  10. ↑ Stewart, Bruce (April 12, 2024). "Merlin the millionaire - Harnesslink".
  11. ↑ Turner, Jonny (April 13, 2024). "Magic night for Merlin in $1m The Race by Grins". Otago Daily Times Online News.
  12. ↑ Reid, Brad (April 14, 2023). "Winners are grinners: Copy That blows them away in $1 million feature - Harnesslink".
  13. ↑ https://www.hrnz.co.nz/news/copy-that-again-shows-his-class-in-the-1m-race-by-grins/
  14. ↑ March 2023, Barry Lichter • 24. "Ray's got the Grins after Copy That's clinical win sees odds slashed for $1 million slot race • Lincoln Farms". Lincoln Farms.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  15. ↑ "Horse racing: Cambridge racing bosses to create richest night in NZ harness racing history". NZ Herald. April 13, 2024.
  16. ↑ "Favourite Self Assured too good in The Race". Favourite Self Assured too good in The Race | Night of Champions.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.