Swayzee to tackle The Nullarbor

The biggest race to grace WA’s shores is set to get even bigger with TABtouch today announcing their slot contender for the 2025 Nullarbor, with Swayzee (Rock N Roll Heaven) set to head to the west in hopes of adding another Group 1 to his impressive harness racing resume.

The Jason Grimson trained sensation recently took out the Tamworth City Cup in his pursuit of the million-dollar NSW Carnival of Cups bonus, and in November he dominated the New Zealand Cup, becoming just the 18th horse in its 121-year history to win the feature twice.

Remarkably, since joining the stable of Grimson in mid-2023, the seven-year-old gelding has won 18 of his 24 starts including four Group 1’s.

“This is very exciting news for WA and the 2025 TABtouch Nullarbor, with Swayzee injecting a level of star power, it really will be a spectacle.”

“I think this could be our best race yet and I think we will see more slot holders announce their horses in the coming weeks, which will only add to the excitement.” Racing WA’s Head of Harness Racing and Special Projects, Cameron Brown said.

Swayzee is the first of 31 contenders locked in for the tri-code TABtouch Western Trilogy series and the countdown is on for Friday, April 25 where Gloucester Park will set the scene, and sparks will fly with 10 of the best go head-to-head to take home Group 1 glory.

Heading into the third year of The Nullarbor, Grimson will be looking to secure his second success in the $1.25million slot race after taking out the elite feature in 2023 with Betterzippit.

Last years Nullarbor was taken out by eastern raider Catch A Wave for Andy and Kate Gath for slot holder Regency Foods, with a WA horse yet to retain the incredible $500,000 winning purse.

Speculations are high with nine slot holders still to announce their runners, but it is likely Team Bond will stick with the local WA star and Inter Dominion runner-up Minstrel.

Racing WA’s Tim Walker spoke with eastern state trainer Luke McCarthy in late 2024 after Don Hugo took out the Inter Dominion at Menangle, with the stable also keen to head west to tackle the elusive TABtouch The Nullarbor.

by Ashleigh Paikos, for RWWA