Apex after winning the 2026 Hambletonian
DEXTER Dunn underlined why is one of NZ’s all-time spotting greats when he lived his dream and won the iconic $US1 million Hambletonian at the famed Meadowlands track in New Jersey this morning.
Dunn, just 34, won a record 10 successive NZ driving premierships before moving to the US eight years ago to try his hand against the world’s best drivers.
In just a few years he became the best in the world, but for all his great wins, the “Hambo” had escaped him.
“This one means the world,” he said. “I grew up in NZ watching this race and all the great drivers who won it and now to win it myself is a dream come true.
“We’ve got some great races over here, but this is the most talked about, I guess you’d call it the Kentucky Derby of harness racing.
“It’s race I’ve tried to win so many times, but never had much luck with bad post positions (barrier draws). Today I had the right draw and the right horse.”
But only just.
The right horse was the Marcus Melander-trained Apex, who just did enough in a stirring duel down the home straight to beat Big Ranger, driven by Tim Tetrick, and won by a nose in the 101st running of the Hambletonian.
“It’s a great feeling, it’s unbelievable, and it was a great race and hell of a battle up the stretch there, but he’s a champion with a heck of a will to win,” Dunn said.
“I had 100 per cent confidence in him, and so did Marcus (Melander). I couldn’t have been happier with him this week and he’s proven to us how good he is.
“I’m sure it would’ve been a great race to watch, too, with Timmy (Tetrick) and I battling it out all the way down the stretch. We were battling very, very hard.
“I’m so happy to have added a race as special as this to all the big ones I’ve won.”
The win came just a week after Dunn topped $US100,000,000 in winning prize money for his drives since making the US home in 2018.
Dunn drove 2226 winners in NZ and 55 in Australia before moving to the US where he has added almost another 2000 wins, including multiple Dan Patch Awards for the North American Driver of the Year.
His biggest Australian wins came aboard the Cran Dalgety-trained Christen Me in the 2014 Miracle Mile and 2015 Hunter Cup.
Dunn actually drove his first winner in Australia at the age of 16 when working for Victorians Andy and Kate Gath. That was aboard The Ultimate One at Geelong in September, 2006.
The strong Down Under flavour to the Hambletonian continued when former top young NSW driver Todd McCarthy, younger brother of champion horseman Luke McCarthy, finished third aboard Minoan.
Todd drove Cool Pappa Bell to win the 2022 Hambletonian.
McCarthy’s other brother, Andy, was also in the race, but his drive Endurance galloped at a crucial stage and finished ninth.
Andy McCarthy scored the biggest win of his stellar career aboard Ramona Hill in the 2020 Hambletonian.
