Matt Cross enjoying that winning feeling

By Michael Guerin

The voice of Addington Matt Cross says there is more than one payoff to the mornings he spends helping out good mate Bob Butt.

But they aren’t usually as tangible as what Bronson provided the lads with at Addington on Friday night.

The three-year-old roared home to win the Woodlands Stud Sires' Stakes $50,000 Harness 7000 overpowering Spirit Of Anarchy late in a 1:56.5 mile rate for the 1980m.

Formerly owned by Jean Feiss when trained by the All Stars, Bronson had issues last season after showing promise as a two-year-old and spent plenty of time strengthening up on a hillside before he was given to Butt to train.

Butt offered Cross a half share as the Canterbury commentator spends “an average of probably four mornings a week” at Butt’s property helping out, including driving work.

“When Bob first told me I thought it would be some Rating 40 horse, not a horse who was close up in good juvenile races last season,” says Cross.

“When he had his issues last season Jean decided he wasn’t the sort of horse she would go on with so Bob was gifted him and I am stoked to be part of it.”

While his share of the winning prize money will come in handy Cross has of course been an even bigger racetrack winner while on air broadcasting this year, having won $50,000 in the TAB Trot Sweepstake at Cambridge in April live on Trackside.

But he says his association with Butt is worth more than money.

“I really enjoy it and it gets me out of bed early, which isn’t a bad thing,” he says.

“But I think being around the horses really helps with my job.

“It helps with being able to maybe see things in their gait or even their gear and I hope it helps with credibility when I talk about those things.

“So there are lots of payoffs with it.”

Bronson might keep paying the boys for a while yet as he has more wins to come and could even end up in a Derby or the new slot race THE VELOCITY at the Show Day Twilight races at Addington Raceway on Friday, November 15.

Other highlights on the card were a treble for Nathan Purdon with The Con Artist, Mr Kaplan and Vessem (all driven by Blair Orange) while Team Dunn kept up their impressive trotting strike rate with Ye Rite Darl and Mighty Logan, the latter looking more and more an open class trotter every week.