Grass track racing's last hurrah at Motukarara today

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk  

Today's meeting at Motukarara will bring to a close the grass track season for the 2025-26 season.

The nine-race programme gets underway at 12.15pm  and features Heat 5 of the Canterbury Plains Challenge Series (3.14pm). The series culminates in a $40,000 final at Addington on May 15.

So how has the grass track season been?

Always popular with spectators and punters, it has seen 42 meetings and 448 races since August 1 last year.

The home of the Banks Peninsula Trotting Club, Motukarara has hosted the most races (83), with 23 favourites winning at a rate of 27.7%. At its December 29 meeting its turnover of $1.994m broke the record for a grass track meeting in this country.

The club has also had the most individual horses with at least one start at the track. That total stands at 576, with Methven second at 552.

Of the season's stand-out performers, Diamond Racing and Team Dunn top the trainers and drivers' statistics. 

From 125 starts Robert and Jenna Dunn have trained 25 winners, one ahead of Michael House with Steve and Amanda Telfer (19 wins), Mark Jones (16) and Bruce Negus (13) rounding out the top five.

In the drivers' leaderboard John Dunn is the clear pace-setter with 32 wins from 194 starts (16.5%).

Second equal behind him are Blair Orange, Robbie Close and Sam Ottley, all with 23 wins. 

Orange has had the most drives, with 223.

Today Orange has a typically strong book of drives with Whatsupman (R1 - $5.50FF), Go Home Denise (R5 - $2.40), The Highlander (R6 - $4.60), Magical Max (R7 - $3.50) and Brookies Player (R9 - $5.50).

The Dunns meanwhile have just two starters at the meeting with Normie Stead (R4) and Amici (R9), to be driven by Wilson House and Riley Harrison.

John Dunn will not be adding to his tally. He does not have a drive today with the likes of Got The Chocolates and Ya Rite Darl in Auckland for Friday's massive meeting at Alexandra Park. 

Got The Chocolates has his first taste of open class racing against the likes of Swayzee and The Lazarus Effect in the $100,000 Group 1 Dawson Harford Taylor Mile while Ya Rite Darl will take on Hillbilly Blues, Meant To Be an Oscar Bonavena and co in the $100,000 Group 1 ANZAC Cup.

To see today's Motukarara fields click here