NZ Sires Stakes news brief

Sires’ Stakes Semis Autumn Classic Series’ Short on Numbers?

As one of New Zealand’s most prestigious and lucrative harness racing series, the NZ Sires’ Stakes is no stranger to attention. In recent weeks, entry numbers for preludes and semifinals have fallen short of expectations and prompted some reflection.

There have certainly been bright spots, such as the ten-horse fields in the two Sires’ Stakes Semis on The Night of Champions at Cambridge on April 4th but other recent races have struggled to attract those numbers. Just seven fillies contested the second Magness Benrow Three-Year-Old semifinalat Addington six days later. Similarly, this month’s IRT Trot preludes saw only six and seven trotters entered, respectively.

This trend isn’t limited to Sires’ Stakes races. The Northern Oaks and Northern Derby preludes drew just five and six starters over Easter. Fortunately, boom pacers Beside Me and Marketplace featured in those events, maintaining interest and media coverage despite the small fields.

Even in the stronghold of Southern harness racing, field sizes have shown signs of strain. The$70,000 Entain Two-Year-Old Classic attracted just six starters, and although the final heat of the Southern Oaks carded a respectable ten runners, a prior heat had to be abandoned due to lack of nominations—leaving top local filly Captain’s Mistress at risk of missing the Diamonds Day final this weekend.

In contrast, stakes racing conditioned by age or class continues to hold strong. The Future Wealth Aged Trotters Classic in Christchurch last week drewa full field of 15, and a similar turnout is expected for the Uncut Gems equivalent next month. Likewise, last year’s Nevele R Fillies Championship saw twelve runners in each of its initialconditioned heats.

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With a NZ Sires’ Stakes Board meeting on the horizon, more ideas will be tabled and discussed as planning begins for upcoming seasons of premier harness stakes racing series.

Despite the current numbers, NZ Sires’ Stakes Executive Martin Pierson is confident there’s no need to panic.

“The Autumn Finals for Sires’ Stakes horses in May will be big on both quality and numbers,” Pierson says.

He acknowledges that the board continues to look for ways to refine the format and address potential weaknesses.

“We’ve trialled a semifinals format over traditional heats for Three-Year-Old pacing sexes. The results have been mixed but not discouraging enough to scrap the idea.”

Encouragingly, nomination and sustaining payment numbers have been trending upwardsin recent years. Pierson admits those gains haven’t yet translated to fuller fields this Autumn, but it may be too early to expect that just yet.

“The aged trotting races are a case in point around potential numbers—plenty have paid up, likely drawn by the big stakes. But when horses like Beside Me and Marketplace are in the mix, it can discourage others in some premiere divisions. That said, even those ‘unbeatable’ types have been defeated recently” he adds with a note of optimism and pragmatism.

“You can’t win if you’re not in—whether you’re initially nominating a foal or accepting for a semi-final, that’s always been the case.”

Watch our race night catch up (below) with Martin and tune in for some always excellent stakes racing up north (Auckland) and down south (Invercargill) this week both venues boasting big entries for feature stakes races!

From NZ Sires Stakes Board