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By Wandering Eyes · Posted
By Jonny Turner Craig Ferguson knows the first few metres of the Group 3 events on Macca Lodge Northern Southland Cup Day could be as crucial as the last. Ferguson links up with two key chances in Validation in the Caduceus Club Of Southland Alabar Fillies Classic and Wag Star in the Macca Lodge Northern Southland Cup. Validation is the only filly in her field of youngsters to have been to the races ahead of Sunday’s Group 3. The Ross Houghton trained two-year-old led early from barrier 1 in her only start at Addington, where she took on colts and geldings, running a respectable third. Ferguson wants to see the same kind of early speed from her at Ascot Park, though with any two-year-old having just their second start, he knows she’s far from push-button yet. “She’s shown that she has got good gate speed, so hopefully she can take advantage of that if she needs to,” Ferguson said. “She has had a trial since that first start and it was nice, so I think she does have options however it pans out.” Validation tucked in behind the speed in her recent trial as her team look to build up her ringcraft at this very early stage of her career. “Having had a start at Addington under lights, they always take good benefit out of it.” “She has got a little bit of an advantage over the others there and hopefully it will help her chances on Sunday.” Ferguson starts Wag Star in the Group 3 Macca Lodge Northern Southland Cup on the back of a win in the Gore Summer Cup. Though Sunday’s feature is a step back up in grade, Wag Star should have no fears in the company he will mix it with. “He was really good last start, he showed a bit of fight and dug in which was great because at times he can get a bit dreamy,” Ferguson said. “It is obviously a harder field this week but he seems to be ticking all the right boxes.” Wag Star made a standing start error two starts ago, something he did on several occasions late last year. With Sunday’s handicaps setting up a very even contest, the pacer can’t afford to take a backward step early. “When he gets it right he begins really good, it surprises us when he does get it wrong.” “He is just that sort of horse, when he puts a wrong step in he loses it.” “That is going to be key on Sunday, you can’t afford to miss away in a race like that.” The Ferguson barn has a two-pronged attack on the Northern Southland Cup, with Beach Day and driver Mark Hurrell lining up alongside Wag Star. The mare got her last standing start badly wrong after running a creditable fourth in the Group 1 New Zealand Standardbred Breeders Stakes at Addington. Ferguson will also drive bright winning hopes Havtimewillfly and Ah Dinnae Ken, who add depth to the reinsman’s strong book of drives on Northern Southland’s big day of harness racing. Jonny Turner’s Five To Follow Race 1 – Princess Lisa After winning nicely at Winton on Thursday, this mare will attempt to make it two-from-two in Southland. Princess Lisa kept digging in to score a handy victory in respectable time at Central Southland Raceway and the best part was it was penalty-free. She takes on what could be described as a slightly harder line-up on Sunday, but it still looks well within her range. Crucially, Princess Lisa draws barrier 1 over the 1700m sprint trip around the tighter Ascot circuit. All of these factors point to her being very hard to beat. Race 4 – Bowlem Over After facing a much less suitable task at Winton on Thursday, the stars look to have aligned for Bowlem Over on Sunday. Barrier 2 and the tight-turning Ascot Park track are right up the front-runner’s alley. Another plus is the booking of Matthew Williamson, who seems to click with this pacer. I am expecting Bowlem Over to use his good early speed to find the lead and take plenty of catching. There doesn’t look to be the potential for too much mid-race pressure in Sunday’s event, which is another plus. After opening a longer third favourite, Bowlem Over looks a nice value option. Race 7 – Ah Dinnae Ken In what could be another smart play, Ah Dinnae Ken looks like another good option for punters. She takes on a very deserving favourite in Mor Moonlight, who will be hard to beat. But the favourite has to start from 10m over 2200m, which is no easy task. Traffic alone could prove tricky for Mor Moonlight, which could place her at a disadvantage compared to Ah Dinnae Ken. Ah Dinnae Ken was outstanding in winning at Ascot Park before she made a mistake over the Gore grass track crossing in her last start. Forgive her that error and consider her on Sunday. Handicaps over sprint trips have undone many good horses, the question is what sort of impact they will have on these two talented trotters. Race 8 – Always Dreaming Always Dreaming could be the smartest play in the Northern Southland Cup. This field for the feature event is extremely even and there is barely a horse in it that doesn’t have genuine winning claims. Always Dreaming is right among those winning chances, which are only boosted by his standing start manners. His ability to make a flying beginning could put him in the perfect spot near the pace, which is vital at Ascot Park. If that’s the case he could also, in effect, have a head-start on his main rivals as he turns for home. Race 9 – Havtimewillfly In what looms as a possible head-to-head battle, I am sticking with this progressive filly. Both Havtimewillfly and Ebonezy are classy types who are sure to be real contenders come Southern Oaks time. Either can win with the way the barrier draws have set up on Sunday, they could be tracking each other. I’m going with the slightly more proven of the two in Havtimewillfly. Her last-start fifth at Addington was excellent, in a tougher race than this. In a quinella of the day scenario, she gets the nod, only just. View the full article -
By KickintheKods · Posted
Yes...I know i'm getting old Yes, I know our industry would be stuffed without these folk flocking to the country to do the hard yards BUT....can we please get some translations across the bottom of the screen so I can understand what they are saying regarding the horses performances I thought I was in the food court at Howick after the second at Wingatui. -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Hawthorne Race Course filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Feb. 27 in federal bankruptcy court in Chicago, seeking a reorganization.View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Hawthorne Race Course, and its related companies, has filed for a Chapter 11 reorganization in Federal Bankruptcy Court in Chicago Friday. According to a press release issued by the track, the “reorganization plan will prioritize paying accrued purses to the Illinois Horsemen as well as payroll for the track employees while restructuring the company's debt. “The goal of the reorganization is to attract a buyer or investor willing to recapitalize Hawthorne and restart operations of the racecourse while maximizing recovery to the company's creditors. Hawthorne will be working with financial advisor Getzler Henrich & Associates, LLC and requests the Federal Court approve Debtor-in-Possession financing to assist with the restructuring process,” according to the press release. Hawthorne president and CEO Tim Carey is quoted as saying, “This is a difficult day for Hawthorne and for my family which has owned Hawthorne for four generations over 117 years, but filing for reorganization is the right thing to do for the Illinois horsemen and for our employees and their families.” The press release notes that Hawthorne aims to appear in Federal Bankruptcy Court in Chicago next week. Reached Friday, Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (ITHA) president Chris Block said the filing was made to help the track secure additional funding from a separate “entity,” and that the scheduled Thoroughbred meet at the track could still go ahead (though perhaps delayed), pending approval of the reorganization by the bankruptcy judge. “The Thoroughbred meet will possibly go ahead, yes. They're going to be in front of a judge by Monday or Tuesday [of next week] with a 'debtor-in-possession' to show the financing to go forward for the next 120 days,” said Block. The term “” refers to when a debtor “keeps possession and control of its assets while undergoing a reorganization under chapter 11.” Block added, “they intend to take care of all the past debt to horsemen, pay their employees, and try to get the track converted back for Thoroughbreds. Then, they will try to hit a target date of either March 29th to start racing or push it back a little bit to give horses more chance to get ready. So, the Thoroughbred meet could still happen. It's just dependent on when it starts and if they'll be able to sustain it through the entire meeting.” Tim Carey addressed leaders of the ITHA the Illinois Harness Horsemen's Association (IHHA) Friday morning with his plans. Block said he was unaware of the identity of the separate funding entity. “They have an entity that's going to push the financing forward,” he said. “That entity will be with them at the [bankruptcy] hearing on Monday or Tuesday.” In the meantime, the track will continue to work on finding a partner to help build and operate a “Racino” at the facility, said Block. “If they can't get to that–this is just me talking, this is not Tim Carey–I'd say the chances of them going forward would be very slim. But this buys them more time. The only way that they can maintain going forward into the future is to get to a deal on something like that,” said Block. As of Monday, there were an estimated 175 Thoroughbreds stabled at the track, under the watch of about ten different trainers. Other trainers are waiting to potentially ship in. At the moment, the ITHA is telling its constituents to hold off on shipping until the outcome of next week's bankruptcy hearing. “We're telling them to wait for next week to materialize and see what the bankruptcy judge does. We'll see at that point in time if Hawthorne gets the approval from the judge for the financing to be put in place so they can move forward, take care of the Harness horsemen and the Thoroughbred horseman that they owe, as well as their own in-house issues with their employees on paying them,” said Block. Hawthorne's press release includes portions of Carey's court declaration in support of Hawthorne's bankruptcy filings. According to the press release, Carey's declaration states “there is substantial interest from potential 'buyers and recapitalization partners' especially because of the opportunity to maximize Hawthorne's 'enterprise value' by completing the building and opening of the racetrack Racino. The Debtor-in-Possession financing can also help pay to reactivate simulcast signals for offtrack betting and online wagering which generates $4 million of revenue monthly.” According to Hawthorne's initial bankruptcy filing, the company's estimated assets are between $50 million and $100 million, while the estimated liabilities are between $100 million and $500 million. The list of creditors who have the 20 largest unsecured claims are led by Fanatics LLC, a digital sports platform licensed in Florida, which has an unsecured claim of $8.75 million, according to the filing. The Stronach Group (TSG) owned Monarch Content Management is next up with an unsecured claim of $7.13 million, according to the filing. Monarch is one of several entities that has stopped sending its simulcast signal to Hawthorne because of unpaid bills. According to an ITHA press release Friday, “Carey also believes that Hawthorne will have the funds necessary to reacquire some, though perhaps not all, of its simulcast signals.” At last month's Illinois Racing Board meeting, the extent of Hawthorne's financial troubles, and with it the enormous ramifications for industry stakeholders in the state, were made glaringly clear. The track's Standardbred stakeholders have been the hardest hit. The meeting followed the action of the state racing board to suspend the operating license of Suburban Downs, Inc., which manages Hawthorne's harness meet, for “failure to provide documentation demonstrating its financial integrity, and proof that they can meet the minimum standards” as outlined in state law. Hawthorne is responsible for more than $580,000 in bounced checks between some 66 individuals in recent months, according to an IHHA representative at the meeting. The ITHA is apparently separately owned around $600,000 from Hawthorne for payments dating back seven months. In 2019, Hawthorne received approval by the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) to build and operate a “Racino” with casino style gambling machines and table games. “The IGB also issued Hawthorne a Master Sports Wagering License which permitted Hawthorne to offer retail and online sports betting. In 2024, the IGB approved continued licensing suitability for Hawthorne and renewed its sports wagering license,” according to the press release. Since 2019, however, nothing concrete has materialized on that possibility despite repeated promises to the contrary by track operators. At last month's board meeting, John Walsh, Hawthorne's assistant general manager, suggested once more that a deal was imminent. “We're working with a new partner, someone nearby, someone interested in Illinois and Illinois racing, who really wants all of this to succeed and move quickly,” said Walsh, who stood in last minute for Carey. Come the end of the Standardbred meet, the track must be prepared for Thoroughbreds. As of Monday, the rail had been switched but the annual reconditioning of the track surface was moving along in slow-motion fashion. “They normally contract that out to a company that brings in some heavy equipment-semi-trucks and tractor trailers-that they can use to expedite the process of putting the surface down,” Block explained on Monday. That so far hasn't happened. Instead, the usual track maintenance crew are using existing equipment, which is dragging the process out. The post Hawthorne Files Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, Thoroughbred Meet Still A Possibility Says Horsemen Groups appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
MGSW Newgrange (Violence–Bella Chianti, by Empire Maker) had his first mare confirmed in foal, Sequel New York announced Friday. The Court Vision mare Thirty Nine Seven was confirmed in foal to Newgrange Feb. 26. Owned by Ann Weaver and boarded at Hidden Lake Farm, Thirty Nine Seven retired with earnings of over $100k. By Violence, Newgrange won graded stakes races at three, four and five, defeating competitors such as Newgate and Mixto. Newgrange stands for $5,000 LFSN at Sequel New York as property of a syndicate. The post Newgrange Has First Mare Checked In Foal appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article
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