Adam Hamilton : Australasia's top 10 pacers right now

The stunning emergence of young Kiwi star Got The Chocolates over the past month has set tongues wagging.

As we take a break from feature open-class racing after a hectic start to 2026, it is an ideal time to ponder how the pecking order looks across Australasia.

For long the Aussies have dominated, but Got The Chocolates, The Lazarus Effect and Marketplace have and will continue to change that.

Here’s my crack at how the top 10 looks now.

It’s unashamedly borrowing from John Jenkins’ “power rankings” of a couple of years ago.

In compiling the list, I’ve put an emphasis on who is best placed right now should they all clash in a race.

That means assessing horses like Kingman, and to a lesser extent Swayzee, is a bit tricky.

It’s clear Swayzee hasn’t been at his very best in NZ this campaign, but the question is whether that’s just where his career is at, or whether he can lift again back home in a series like the Inter Dominion?

On face value, horses like Got The Chocolates and even The Lazarus Effect have his measure.

Before the Western Australian fans scream out, I didn’t include the likes of Minstrel and Magnificent Storm because they almost certainly won’t compete again on the eastern seaboard at their age. And, you could put them any higher than 10th spot now anyway given the quality of the list.

Opinions will vary and it will make discussion, so here we go.

1. LEAP TO FAME

The undisputed champ needs no explaining. Not only is one of, maybe THE best we’ve ever seen, but he’s also racing at least as well as ever. The Miracle Mile into his astonishing second Cambridge romp was phenomenal. It’s one thing to get to second on this list, but dethroning Larry will take some doing. Especially now he’s racing on for at least another six to 12 months.

2. GOT THE CHOCOLATES

While the Aussies dominated last year’s NZ Cup with Kingman beating Leap To Fame, most left Addington’s iconic Cup Week believing the Kiwis were ready to mount their challenge over the next 12 months. And Got The Chocolates looks the best of the bunch. His clashes with Marketplace last season were special. It is still a bit of a surprise to see how effortlessly he’s stepped into the big league, against a champion stayer like Swayzee, over the past month. He looks faster and still has all the strength he showed at three. He’s got the makings of a champion.

3. CAPTAINS MISTRESS

As brilliant as they come. This young mare’s ability to run breathtaking sectional times, seemingly in cruise-mode, is remarkably exciting. She would have gone close to beating Leap To Fame in the Miracle Mile with gaps at the right time. She looks one of those very rare mares who could upstage the boys at the top level. When and if we get the chance to see her try and do it again is the question? She’s got the Rising Sun (July 4) against three and four-year-olds. Victory would get her a golden ticket into the Inter Dominion final and trainer Jason Grimson has declared she'll take on the challenge (and Leap To Fame again) if she gets the ticket.

4. KINGMAN

The single hardest horse to assess on this list. Late last year many felt he had, or at least was about to, take the mantle as Australasia’s best pacer from Leap To Fame after beating him in his merits in the Victoria and NZ Cups. But he hasn’t been the same horse since. Did all those runs in Victoria flatten him? Can he regain that phenomenal form of late last year? We won’t get to see until later in the year with him out for a long spell and missing the Inter Dominion. The sport needs him back and firing. That NZ Cup win was one of the biggest in the history of the great race.

5. SWAYZEE

What a champion he has been across three years, and especially having to continually contend with his younger sibling, Leap To Fame. It was only back in February he led throughout and beat Leap To Fame in the Hunter Cup for a second time. But he’s now eight and his form since then hasn’t been quite the same. He’s trying as hard as ever and he clearly wasn’t overly comfortable racing the opposite direction in Auckland of late, but is time finally catching up with him? If he heads to the Brisbane Inter Dominion, that will tell us so much more.

6. DON HUGO

After a magnificent 18 months where he won an Inter Dominion, Miracle Mile (beating Leap To Fame), TAB Eureka and Blacks A Fake (again beating Leap To Fame), 2026 has barely got started for this guy. A patient approach and untimely health setback has limited him to just five starts. He’s such a pro with the gate speed and tactical speed to win just about any race. It’ll be fascinating to see how he stacks up in this Brisbane Inter Dominion.

7. THE JANITOR

Could easily (and maybe should be) much higher. But he’s being judged as much on potential as performance at the moment. The two “wow” runs have been the close third in last December’s Blacks A Fake and his enormous second to Leap To Fame in the Miracle Mile. Cambridge last month showed he’s still a work in progress for Chantal Turpin and Pete McMullen, but all the raw ingredients are there. Could this Brisbane Inter Dominion be his absolute breakthrough moment?

8. THE LAZARUS EFFECT

Like Got The Chocolates and Marketplace, he’s a horse who stamped himself as seriously going places at last November’s NZ Cup Week. He’s been patiently guided to the top by Bob Butt and is such a pro. He may not have the X-factor of Got The Chocolates, but his manners and speed are going to win him some serious races.

9. MARKETPLACE

It's fantastic he's heading to Australia in coming weeks with the Rising Sun his major target. He played such a huge role in that awesome 3YO rivalry in NZ with Got The Chocolates last season. There wasn’t much between them at all, with this guy looking faster and Chocolates appearing stronger. While this guy has come back and done what’s been asked this season, he hasn’t been asked to take the giant next step yet like Got The Chocolates has done so impressively. He’s a star, but just how big of a star is a question will know more about in the next couple of months.

10. MAX DELIGHT (above) / CAPTAINS KNOCK (below)

It might be cheating a bit, but I just couldn’t split this pair. They are so similar. It’s easy to take Captains Knock for granted, but to sustain his form through such a long and gruelling last campaign and overcome some niggling issues was outstanding. He finished with that really creditable Cambridge run. Old Max Delight is just a marvel and he showed the Nullarbor win was no fluke with another huge run in the Fremantle Cup.