Past Southland Oaks Winner-Josephine Bret

When harness racing filly Josephine Bret (Knowing Bret) won the 1984 Southland Oaks it was her young driver Allan Beck’s first feature race win.

Trained by Allan’s father Bob, Josephine Bret was raced by her breeders Jack and Winnie Hamilton of Lochiel. She started four times as a two year old with her best performance the 1983 New Zealand Welcome Stakes.

Her form leading into the 1984 Southland Oaks was outstanding – 221312531191. Three of her wins were in heats of the series at Winton, Wyndham and Gore and she’d finished third in the Group Three Cross Stakes at Addington behind smart types Kantuck and Freightman.

Her win at Gore was Allan’s first winning drive.

In the $10,000 final held on her home course at Winton Josephine Bret beat Timepiece by a length and a half with a nose back to Pinkafield. The winning time for the 2400 metre mobile was 3-04.7.

The win was the beginning of a great record that Beck holds in the Southland feature. He won the 1989 Southland Oaks with Adrenaline for his good friend George Smith, the 1998 final with Tartan Lady for Ray Faithful and the 2001 Southland Oaks with Shortys Girl which he also trained.

After winning the Southland Oaks Josephine Bret ran second in the New Zealand Derby, a race that saw only five of the fourteen starters finish. She then went on to win the Group One New Zealand Oaks. Josephine Bret finished her career with Ryal Bush trainer Hamish Hunter who won two races with her.

From twenty four starts she won nine races and was placed nine times.

Next Sunday the Invercargill HRC host Diamonds Day at Ascot with a host of feature race including the $110,000 Group One Diamond Creek Farm Two Year Old Classic, the $60,000 Group Two Macca Lodge/Nevele R Southern Oaks, the $60,000 Group Two Alabar Supremacy Stakes, the $50,000 Group Three Entain Two Year Old Mobile Trot and the $40,000 Regent Car Court Southern Country Cups Final.

A truly spectacular day of racing which gets underway at 12 noon.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink