Regal Attire adds to his Cups Collection

Brilliant trotter Regal Attire (Muscle Hill) continued his Cups collection with victory in the 2025 Podiatry Care Gawler Hambletonian Trotters Cup (2550m) at Gawler on Monday, March 24.

Since coming into the Two Wells stable of trainer Ryan Hryhorec in late 2023, Regal Attire has taken out five Cups for Australia’s most prolific owner Mick Boots.

Last year, the seven-year-old won the Fred Jones, Strathalbyn, Ladbrokes and Victor Harbor Trotters Cups.

On Monday, the gelding, a $4.40 chance, gave a faultless performance coming off a 30-metre handicap to score a three-metre win from South-Easterner Stockman Peter ($7.50) with Used To Be A Maid ($4 fav), a stablemate of the winner, 1-1/2 metres away third.

Regal Attire gave champion SA reinsperson Danielle Hill her first Hambletonian win, and the victory was due to her brilliant tactical drive in the first 200 metres of the race.

With 10 rivals in front of her when the starter released the tapes, Hill was able to weave Regal Attire between slow starters and mistake makers to settle in the perfect one-one, one-back position.

From then, it was a case of coming three wide off the back and Regal Attire proved too strong for his rivals.

Both Hryhorec and Hill said Regal Attire was a star.

“I’m grateful that Mick (owner Mick Boots) entrusted me with him, and from day one, he has just been a star,” Hryhorec said.

“Off a 30-metre handicap today I thought he might have found the task very tough, but Dani drove him brilliantly.

“He was due to run in the Victor Harbor Cup earlier this month but had to be scratched before the race when he had a slight colic attack. He missed a bit of work, and I thought that also might be against him today.

“It was excellent win, but I guess he will go back another 10-metres for the victory which will make his task even tougher for the rest of the Cups carnival.”

Hill described Regal Attire as a “dream to drive.”

“He steps away beautifully from the stand and travels beautifully,” Hill said.

“I thought from his handicap he was going to have to do it tough at some stage to try and get into the race and couldn’t believe we were able to get into as perfect trailing position.

“Once he settled so close I knew he was going to be very hard to beat. He is a lovely horse.”

REGAL ATTIRE REPLAY

Hryhorec said he would nominate all his fast-class trotters for next Monday’s Kapunda Cup but would only make a decision on which ones ran closer to acceptance time.

The trainer also had third-placed Used To Be A Maid, Tweedledee (5th) and Rakero Blaze (11th) in the Hambletonian.

It was Hryhorec’s second training success in the Hambletonian having won with C K Spur in 2022. He also drove C K Spur and as a driver won the 2015 feature on Rejuvenation for trainer Ray Goble.

The Gawler Cup meeting was another good day at the office for Hryhorec who already has 32 wins for the season to be a clear leader in the SA Trainer’s premiership.

Apart from Regal Attire, Hryhorec had wins with Lochinvar Magic (Tony Piccolo MP for Light Pace), Aldebaran Dexta (Gerry’s Dublin Meats Trotters Handicap) and Latrell (SA BOTRA Trotters Handicap) for four wins on the 10-race program.

Hryhorec said Aldebaran Dexta, which came off a 30-metre handicap to win at Gawler would almost certainly be added to his nominations for next week’s Kapunda Trotters Cup.

For complete race results, click here.

by Graham Fischer, for HRSA