BOAY Racing News

Brett Crawford, one of South Africa’s top trainers with a career spanning over two decades, is embarking on a new and exciting chapter in Hong Kong. With an impressive record of 38 Group One wins and nearly 1500 career victories, Crawford has established himself as a prominent figure in South African racing. His transition to Hong Kong’s competitive training scene has been hailed as “the opportunity of a lifetime,” a sentiment echoed by both local and international observers. At 53, Crawford has experienced an eventful career, beginning as a young rider and later training under renowned mentors such as Mike de Kock and Dennis Drier. His own training career took off in 2001, and his most successful season came in 2017/18, with six Group One victories, cementing his reputation. Crawford, reflecting on his journey, noted, “To be given the chance to work in Hong Kong is the opportunity of a lifetime, and I’ll be doing everything I can to make the most of it.” In Hong Kong, Crawford is entering a high-stakes environment, where his skills will be tested in one of the world’s most competitive racing jurisdictions. “I’ve always wanted to come to Hong Kong, and when the opportunity presented itself, I knew I had to take it,” Crawford said. “It’s a fantastic racing environment, and I’m excited to get started.” Crawford’s achievements in South Africa have been marked by his steady climb up the trainers’ premiership rankings, and his work alongside his son, James, in the 2023/24 season demonstrated his dedication and family-driven commitment to racing excellence. “Having James by my side as we look toward the future makes the journey even more rewarding,” Crawford said. View the full article

New Zealand Cup winner Mehzebeen is set to make her Australian debut in a Benchmark race at Caulfield on Saturday on a path towards a staying feature in South Australia next month. Trained by Mark Walker, Mehzebeen is scheduled to take her place in Saturday’s Benchmark 100 race over 2000m, which will be her first start since winning the Group 3 New Zealand Cup over 3200m at Riccarton in mid-November. The mare also won a 2600-metre Listed race at Riccarton a week before her New Zealand Cup success. “She has come over for the Adelaide Cup,” Walker said. Walker said the mare’s best form is over further than the 2000m of Saturday’s event. “But she had a couple of jumpouts, there’s a nice Listed race at Moonee Valley in two weeks over 2500 metres and then she runs in the Adelaide Cup,” he said. Mehzebeen will jump from the inside barrier in Saturday’s race with star jockey Blake Shinn to ride. Shinn has formed a good association with the Te Akau Racing stable in recent times, including winning the Karaka Millions 3YO on Damask Rose for the trans-Tasman operation last month at Ellerslie. “Blake Shinn is on her so that is a big bonus,” Walker said. “Whatever she does, she will be better once she gets up in trip to those other distances, but she should be thereabouts at the finish anyway.” The New Zealand Cup win took five-year-old Mehzebeen’s record to five wins from 19 career starts and Walker is hopeful the stayer can measure up in an Adelaide Cup. “It’s quite a genuine two-mile race at Riccarton and she won it pretty well,” he said. “Obviously they’ll be a better class of horse, but she just keeps stepping up most campaigns, so she should be a chance.” The G2 Adelaide Cup (3200m) is on March 10 at Morphettville, with the Listed Torney Night Cup (2500m) at Moonee Valley on February 21. View the full article

There are 12 horse racing meetings set for Australia on Saturday, February 8. Our racing analysts here at horsebetting.com.au have found you the best bets and the quaddie numbers for Caulfield, Randwick, Doomben, Ascot, Alice Springs & Te Rapa (NZ). Saturday’s Free Horse Racing Tips – February 8, 2025 Caulfield Racing Tips Randwick Racing Tips Doomben Racing Tips Ascot Racing Tips Alice Springs Racing Tips Te Rapa (NZ) Racing Tips As always, there are plenty of promotions available for Australian racing fans. Check out all the top online bookmakers to see what daily promotions they have. If you are looking for a new bookmaker for the horse racing taking place on February 8, 2025 check out our guide to the best online racing betting sites. Neds Code GETON 1 Take It To The Neds Level Neds Only orange bookie! Check Out Neds Review 18+ Gamble Responsibly. What are you really gambling with? Set a deposit limit today. “GETON is not a bonus code. Neds does not offer bonus codes in Australia and this referral code does not grant access to offers. Full terms. BlondeBet Signup Code GETON 2 Punters Prefer Blondes BlondeBet Blonde Boosts – Elevate your prices! Join BlondeBet Review 18+ Gamble Responsibly. WHAT ARE YOU REALLY GAMBLING WITH? full terms. 3 Next Gen Racing Betting Picklebet Top 4 Betting. Extra Place. Every Race. Join Picklebet Review 18+ Gamble Responsibly. What are you really gambling with? Full terms. Recommended! 4 It Pays To Play PlayUp Aussie-owned horse racing specialists! Check Out PlayUp Review 18+ Gamble Responsibly. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Full terms. Dabble Signup Code AUSRACING 5 Say Hey to the social bet! Dabble You Better Believe It Join Dabble Review 18+ Gamble Responsibly. THINK. IS THIS A BET YOU REALLY WANT TO PLACE? Full terms. Bet365 Signup Code GETON 6 Never Ordinary Bet365 World Favourite! Visit Bet365 Review 18+ Gamble Responsibly. GETON is not a bonus code. bet365 does not offer bonus codes in Australia and this referral code does not grant access to offers. What’s gambling really costing you? Full terms. Horse racing tips View the full article

2 drivers refusing to supply a blood sample tonight at auckland. When there were probably only about 30 different drivers competing on the night,thats not  good.. Interesting that both drivers/trainers use the same training complex.D balle and z meredith. Z meredith now likely to have 3 breaches within the last 4 years.  

i know it looked a bit dangerous the way her cart hit the legs of oranges horse,causing that horse to break,but the rule says shes allowed to manouvre her horse in like that.and mr orange should have just gone on the fence,even if it meant he effectively was diminishing his chances of placing. That is why i've started a couple of topics on it in the past,saying its a silly rule because it can result in potential danger if a horse breaks,as horses being knocked around tend to panic,especially if their legs are hit. the rules been like that for decades. i believe the reason you don't see drivers pushing in all the time is ,i think,drivers have their own standards of safety for themselves and others and their horses anddon't bother to do it. . It can get dangerous when you have drivers who ,when being pushed in,actually believe their horses have a slight advantage so resist the driver outside and jostle,often relating in one breaking. also,in years gone by,i'm aware of cases where the jostling has happened on the bend where the trackside coverage is difficult to say who was slightly in front of who,and the stipes have used the position of the carts to say the outside horses cart was in front of the inside horses cart,therefore that meant the outside horse was in the right.They said the size of the horses was irrelevant nor would they factor in the fact that the much bigger horse who was on the inside,and  was not only bigger,but had a cart with cart extensions on.  In other words you can have one cart in front of another,but that doesn't necassarily mean the horse who's cart is in front actually has its head in front of the other,given the size of the horse and the length of the cart.So sometimes drivers had got blamed when they shouldn't have. so,i agree with you,its not a good rule,if reducing interference is what they are trying to achieve.