The Anto Russell Memorial Cup at Racetime

One of the highlights of the Irish harness racing calendar, the Anto Russell Memorial Cup, is being staged at Racetime Raceway this Saturday (July 29) and a record attendance is expected to descend on the venue which is just located outside Belfast in Northern Ireland.

Five of Irelands fastest pacers will go to post in the feature event the Anto Russell Memorial Flying Mile which will be held as the finale on the program, and this will be ran under a preferred free-for-all format.

All eyes will be on Colin McTaggarts GD’s Blizzard to see if she can maintain her unbeaten record in this fascinating contest. This will be her sternest test to date as she progresses rapidly up through the ranks.

She won’t have it all her own way however as grizzled veteran John Barley is 2 from 2 this year and the ex-track record holder owned, trained and driven by Micheal Goggin won’t go down without a fight.

A recent newcomer to the NISA fold is County Fermanagh’s Johnny Burns and his Meadowbranch Roman has already tasted success at Racetime in 2023. It wouldn’t be the biggest surprise in the world if the gelding was to upstage his more fancied rivals on the day.

Share A Smile and Check The Deal completes the line up and these 2 solid campaigners can’t be discounted either. All in all, this is set to be one of the best races of the season so far and punters are guaranteed to leave the Country Antrim venue off a high after this mouth-watering clash of the titans.

All contests on the day have added money to the main purses and organizers NISA have extended sincere gratitude to all who have sponsored. These include Dean Russell & Family, Tommy McTaggart and Greg Dean & Family.

As with all races held at Racetime, prize money is paid out in full in cash after racing – the only track in Ireland to do so and this concept has proven to be very popular with horseowners who have flocked to the venue in the droves so far in 2023 resulting in increased field sizes and more competitive racing.

An added attraction will be a live Reiki demonstration by Valerie Westfield PHd who will also conduct a Q&A session afterwards.

Action starts at Racetime at 3:00 pm and all are welcome to attend.

From Racetime Raceway