The Bigboss set to rule in Nutrien Equine Classic series

Nathan Jack’s exciting two-year-old The Bigboss (Bettors Delight) will tackle the upcoming Nutrien Equine Classic series fresh from a track record-breaking harness racing performance at Echuca.

The juvenile pacer smashed the all-ages 1755m mark last Tuesday when he led and dominated his rivals in a sizzling 1:54.8 mile rate.

Jack said it was important the son of Bettors Delight had a strong hit-out at Echuca as he tunes up for the Nutrien heats at Bendigo on Wednesday next week.

“I wasn’t out there to break the track record, I just wanted him to do a little bit,” Jack said.

“He had a hard run first-up, but hadn’t done much since then. He went to Wagga and had an easy kill to tick off getting back into the draw.

“He then went to the trials and it was pretty much the same. He didn’t do much, he led and let one up the inside and just worked to the line.

“It worked out quite good as Echuca was a two-week gap or so into the Nutrien heats. He had to do a bit there and won’t do much in between now.”

The Bigboss, who was beaten by Kyle Marshall’s smart youngster Smoken Ace on debut, has a promising future according to the Lemnos trainer-driver.

“He’s pretty nice. He’s very strong and he’s getting a lot faster each time,” Jack said of the $75,000 yearling purchase.

“He was a bit wayward early on, but his manners are getting better and he’s a pretty nice horse. I think he’ll be a real nice horse in six months.”

The Nutrien series kicks off with heats for two-year-old and three-year-old pacers at Bendigo on August 2 before the trotters get their turn with qualifiers at Ballarat the following night.

All roads then lead back to Bendigo for the finals on August 11 where more than $900,000 in prizemoney will go up for grabs.

The Classic races are for horses purchased from Nutrien Standardbred Yearling Sales.

Last week, it was confirmed that Harness Racing Victoria and Nutrien would partner to host a new $1.25 million race meeting next April.

Nutrien championships night will be at Melton on Saturday, April 13, 2024 for Nutrien sales graduates, with two-year-old and three-year-old pacing and trotting features for both sexes. It will form part of a three-day event, with sales at Oaklands Junction on days either side of the race meeting.

For complete race results, click here.

by Tim O’Connor, for Harness Racing Victoria