Sam Thornley clinches the Australasian Young Drivers’ Championships

Kiwi harness racing driver Sam Thornley had the perfect finale in clinching the Australasian Young Drivers’ Championships (AYDC) in Sydney last night.

Driving in the first race on Inter Dominion Finals night at Menangle, Thornley teamed up with top Kiwi pacer Tact McLeod (Sweet Lou) in the ninth and final heat of the championships and they left nothing to chance by leading throughout to win easily.

It is Thornley’s first win in the championships, though he had finished second previously, and he became the sixth Kiwi to win the championships in the last 12 years.

It means a lot,” said Thornley post race, “a lot of it came down to the horses and the draws.”

“It was all good.”

Thornley went to the top of the New South Wales-based championships with a win and a second placing at Bathurst on night two, and he was never headed. He ended up with 93 points, 27 clear of his nearest rival.

Final standings (after 9 heats) : 

Sam Thornley (New Zealand) 93
Will Rixon (New South Wales) 66
Ewa Justice (Victoria) 63
Jacob Duggan (Tasmania) 62
Taleah McMullen (Queensland) 56
Kerryn Tomlinson (New Zealand) 55
Josh Gallagher (New South Wales) 53
Corey Johnson (South Australia) 49
Kyle Symington (Western Australia) 47
Crystal Hackett (New Zealand) 42

“It was great to share a win like that with Sam,” Tact McLeod’s trainer Mark Jones said. “What a way for him to finish the series and a great way for us to get this Aussie campaign underway with the horse.”

Tact McLeod was a late entry for the Inter Dominion itself, but an untimely hoof abscess forced him out just days before it started.

“He was pretty close tonight, but will definitely benefit from it because he hadn’t trialled,” Jones said. “He’ll go straight down to Anthony (Butt) and Sonya (Smith) for three or four races in Victoria.

“The Bendigo Cup is on January 4 and then there’s Shepparton, Ballarat and Hunter Cups after that. I’ll let them decide.

“He’s shown he’s got the makings of a nice horse and now he just needs experience in these  better races, which he’ll get in Victoria.”

Tact McLeod blasted straight to the front and rolled along for a 1min50.4sec mile, winning by 7.9m.

Thornley meanwhile heads home with the junior drivers’ premiership set for a thrilling finish. He leads with 60 wins in 2024, with Carter Dalgety on 58 and Wilson House on 57.

While he’s away both his rivals will be in action on the grass at Rangiora today.

From Harness Racing New Zealand