THE Addington Harness Racing New Zealand Ranking Committee had a busy time yesterday dealing to two sets of rankings for the first time at its initial meeting for 2015.
In a rare situation, a marked increase in Australian and international nominations made comparing the various merits of horses more difficult, but it is exciting to see so many varied form-lines coming together for races like the $750,000 Christchurch Casino NZ Trotting Cup and the $250,000 Hellers Dominion.
The NZ Trotting Cup rankings are headed by last season's 'Horse of the Year' Christen Me, with Australian nomination and Hunter Cup winner Arden Rooney at two being the top ranked visitor.
While the NZ Cup is missing stars such as Adore Me and Terror To Love, a new guard is set to take their place.
The committee was impressed with the overall depth and quality of those nominated, which suggests an intriguing spring build-up is in store. There is the potential to have a large group of quality up-and-comers clambering spots in the lead-up to harness racing's great race.
In the Dominion, defending champion Jaccka Justy heads the list, just ahead of Trotter of the Year, Stent and the ever-present Sheemon.
An exciting aspect is the addition of two well-performed European trotters.
This is sure to add a significant edge to the Dominion and its lead-up.
Ranking the Hellers Dominion proved to be an interesting process for the committee.
Addington Racing Manager Brian Rabbit explains; "It's tremendous having the international flavour adding to the Dominion.:
"The Australian nominations are well credentialed, which is great for the potential depth of the race but that also gave us some headaches."
"The trickiest part for the committee was weighing up the two European horses, Used To Me and Daryl Boko."
"Both have competed very well in the hotbed of European trotting."
"Used To Me is a proven top-level type performer in France, while Daryl Boko ran third when favourite in the Finnish Derby last year, a Group 1 race worth 221,000 Euros and brings over solid Swedish form."
"We had to exercise discretion for the European pair, as they clearly fall outside of what the ranking criteria was introduced to cover."
The connections of smart trotter Boizel have made a Late Payment to nominate and he now takes the total number of Hellers Dominion nominations to 39.
The next set of rankings will be released following a committee meeting on Tuesday 8 September after the Maurice Holmes Vase on September 4.
If you require any further information on this, please do not hesitate to contact the Racing Department at HRNZ on 03) 964 1200 or Brian Rabbitt at Addington Raceway on 03) 338 9094.
Courtney Clarke
New Zealand Cup Rankings
1) Christen Me
2) Arden Rooney
3) Smolda
4) Franco Nelson
5) Franco Ledger
6) Sky Major
7) Ohoka Punter
8) Tiger Tara
9) Corzin Terror
10) Easy On The Eye
11) Venus Serena
12) Lancewood Lizzie
13) Mossdale Conner
14) Forever Gold
15) Jason Rulz
16) Belkmyster
17) Te Kawau
18) Dalton Bromac
19) Alleluia
20) Messini
21) Bit Of A Legend
22) Saveapatrol
23) Choise Achiever
24) Mach Beauty
25) Chancellor Cullen
26) Brilliant Strike
27) Quick As A Trick
28) Lewy Risk
29) Jivin Cullen
30) Ideal Success
31) Mighty Flying Mac
32) Mach’s Gladiator
33) Ballindooley
34) Bettor Dream
35) No Doctor Needed
36) Major Bubbles
37) Delightful Dash
38) Major Star
39) Provocative Prince
40) Zakspatrol
Dominion Handicap Rankings
1) Jaccka Justy
2) Stent
3) Sheemon
4) Master Lavros
5) Used To Me
6) Kincaslough
7) Alley Way
8) Vincennes
9) One Over Da Moon
10) Jag’s Invasion
11) King Denny
12) Habibti
13) Daryl Boko
14) Clover Don
15) Prime Power
16) Realmein
17) Kyvalley Blur
18) Maori Time
19) Springbank Sam
20) Speeding Spur
21) Royal Aspirations
22) Overanova
23) Boizel
24) Valmagne
25) Cool Cobber
26) Uncas
27) Monbet
28) Majestic Time
29) Quite A Moment
30) Escapee
31) Harrysul
32) Live The Dream
33) Sol Invictus
34) Al Bundy
35) Leanne’s Boy
36) Monty Python
37) Waterloo Sunset
38) Wingsonhai
39) Prestine