Big prizemoney boost for Bathurst Gold Coronet

The Bathurst Harness Racing Club has announced the Bathurst Gold Coronet for three-year-old trotters will have an elevated purse of $60,000 and Group 1 status for the next three years.

The 300 per cent prizemoney hike is a collaboration between Victorian-based nursery Yabby Dam Farms, Harness Racing NSW and the Bathurst Harness Racing Club.

The $60,000 Final will make the Yabby Dam Farms Gold Cold Coronet one of the richest features for young trotters on the Australian calendar and is expected to draw horses from NSW, Victoria and Queensland.

The 2026 edition will be conducted at the Bathurst Gold Crown Paceway on Saturday, March 28. Heats will be run one week earlier.

Pat Driscoll, the principal of Yabby Dam Farms, said: “It’s exciting to be associated withsuch a time-honoured event. Many thanks to HRNSW and BHRC for their outstanding efforts in enabling the Bathurst Gold Coronet to reach its current Group 1 status. It’s appreciated by all trotting participants.”

Brendan Micallef, the chief executive officer of the Bathurst HRC, said: “The Bathurst Harness Racing Club is extremely grateful to Pat and HRNSW for partnering with us to make this initiative a reality. There’s no doubt the Gold Coronet had lost its way and was on the verge of being cancelled, so to see this historic race revived as part of our Gold Crown Carnival is something the club is very proud of.”

An integral part of the annual Bathurst Gold Crown carnival since 2001, Yabby Dam Farms Gold Coronet has been taken out by many of the country’s best square-gaiters including London To A Brick (2023), Elite Stride (2020), Caligula (2019) and Red Hot Tooth (2016).

Foal payments ($110) and three-year-old sustaining payments ($165) for the 2026 Gold Coronet are due on October 31, 2025. A final payment of $220 is due on February 6, 2026.

This fee structure also applies to Yabby Dam Farms Gold Coronet 40 in 2027 and Gold Coronet 41 in 2028.

by Peter Wharton, for Harness Racing New South Wales