Inter Dominion champion moving south

Tiger Tara, the 2019 Horse of the Year and 2018 Inter Dominion champion, will stand this season at the renowned Yirribee Pacing Stud, Wagga. His fee is $3,500 including GST.

In his first public season last year he served 72 mares, of which 67 received positive tests.

Tiger Tara, who took a record of 1:49.8, was an out-and-out champion.

From 112 starts he won 37 and was 40 times placed for $2,375,065 in stakes. He won a staggering 22 Group races – including seven Group 1’s – and earned $100,000 or more in six consecutive seasons.

Possessed of speed and stamina, he won over all distances from 1609 to 2760 metres and emerged successful in three states of Australia and both islands of New Zealand.

Tiger Tara set the harness racing world abuzz from October 2018 to February 2019 winning seven races – six at Group level – highlighted by an unprecedented treble of Grand Circuit events – the Inter Dominion Final, A. G. Hunter Cup (smashing his own track record) and the Victoria Cup – by a combined margin of 41 metres.

Perhaps one of his greatest performances came in defeat however, when, after being required to overcome a difficult barrier draw and a torrid passage, he finished a nose second to Thefixer in the 2018 NZ Cup.

Among Tiger Tara’s other successes were the Group 1 $222,000 Great Northern Derby, Group 1 $165,000 NZ Sires’ Stakes 3YO Championship, Group 1 $240,000 NZ Free-for-all, Group 1 $100,000 Canadian Club Sprint, Group 2 NZ Canterbury Classic, Group 2 Renshaw Cup, Group 3 NZ Hannon Memorial and the Group 3 NSW Golden Mile.

​By the great Bettor’s Delight, Tiger Tara belongs to the same maternal family as the Ballarat Cup and dual Inter Dominion heat winner A G’s White Socks 1:52.7 ($527,444), the Fremantle Cup winner Power Of Tara 1:50.6 ($846,608), Robyn’s Treasure (NZ Oaks), Salty Robyn (1:49.2), Sammy Maguire (Bendigo Cup) and the NZ Easter Cup winner Matthew Lee.

Tara Gold, the dam of Tiger Tara, had a 100 per cent record at stud with six winners from six foals of racing age, three of who took records of 2:00 or better. She was a Dream Away mare from Atomic Gold (dam of three in 2:00), by Soky’s Atom from Vita Gold (dam of six winners), by Knowing Bret from Petronella, and tracing to the noted foundation mare Dolly (by Young Irvington).

Tiger Tara is a fine natured horse of good conformation and is a dapple bay.

His pedigree includes four strains of Albatross blood, one being through B G’s Bunny, the sire of influential sire Butler B G. Other champion sires represented include Cam Fella, Artsplace, Soky’s Atom and Overtrick.

by Peter Wharton