Look ahead to this weekend's harness racing action in our weekly preview, thanks to Darren Clayton.
All harness eyes are on Menangle where the Sunshine State will be represented in strong numbers.
Trainers Shannon Price, Grant Dixon and Chantal Turpin will all have runners on the big Group 1 feature night and all three prepare definite winning chances in their respective events.
LEAP TO FAME HOPING TO JOIN ELITE CLUB
Leap To Fame, the champion pacer known as 'Larry', will chase another piece of history this Saturday night.
Grant Dixon opted to head south one day sooner than originally anticipated to ensure that any transport issues were negated.
Successive victories in the nation’s premier sprint are not completely unique.
However, the depth of the race in 2025 is arguably the strongest on record.
There are seven races in the current day Australian Grand Circuit with the Miracle Mile being one of those.
The current titleholders in six of those events will line-up against each other this Saturday night.
Leap To Fame (Miracle Mile and Blacks A Fake), Swayzee (Victoria Cup and A G Hunter Cup), Catch A Wave (Fremantle Cup) and Don Hugo (Inter Dominion) are the respective trophy holders in each of those Grand Circuit events.
Add in former boom horse Captain Ravishing, 2024 Miracle Mile runner-up Sooner The Bettor, evergreen veteran Max Delight and the up-and-comer Tact Mcleod and the race profiles as one of the deepest fields assembled.
The task for Leap To Fame looks similar to his victory last year.
He needs to overcome a wide gate.
He defied history to add the Mile to his bulging trophy cabinet.
Drawn wide again this year, Leap To Fame may need to sit parked, as he did enroute to victory in the 2024 edition.
Tact Mcleod (seven) is a noted speedster off the arm and Don Hugo (two) also has early speed.
Captain Ravishing is the big query, having been a good beginner earlier in his career.
However, that has not been on display or used for some time in the enigmatic pacers career.
A win for Leap To Fame would surely cement his name as one of the greatest pacers ever seen in this part of the world.
The recent Queensland Hall of Fame inductee would move to fourth on the all-time stake earners list behind Blacks A Fake, Im Themightyquinn and Lazarus.
FATE AWAIT ON A PATH TO GREATNESS
The Grant Dixon stable will be heavily represented on Saturday night at Menangle with a two-prong attack on the New South Wales Derby and a major chance in the Raith Memorial for three-year-old fillies.
Both Fate Awaits and Path To Greatness have qualified for the Derby this Saturday after both placed third in their respective heats last week.
Dixon will take the reins aboard Fate Awaits from barrier two, while Robert Morris has been booked for Path To Greatness from barrier five.
The Dixon-trained pair will take on the all-conquering Emma Stewart stable who will be represented by six runners, including the odds-on favourite in early markets, Always Hot.
Potentially holding an advantage over his rivals, Always Hot gained a ballot exemption for the Final when securing victory in the Simpson Memorial.
The star three-year-old contested a Melton race last weekend, rather than a Derby heat, where he scored an effortless victory to extend his unbeaten record to seven.
Recently crowned Australian two-year-old colt or gelding of the year, Fate Awaits does hold the draw advantage over the Stewart stable and will start inside all six of her contingent.
Fate Awaits is chasing a second Menangle Group 1.
Stablemate Cool And Classy will venture beyond Albion Park for the first time.
The Australian two-year-old filly of the year for 2024 will make her first appearance as a three-year-old.
Defeated just once in seven starts in her maiden season, the last-start Sunshine Stars Classic winner has been given just the one Albion Park trial in preparation for the return.
Despite being first-up, Cool And Classy is the early favourite with the Raith Memorial always a strong pointer to the New South Wales Oaks.
CAN THE CAPTAIN LEAD THEM HOME?
Listed as an emergency for the Miracle Mile, Sure Thing Captain has landed a terrific chance to secure feature race success in the Australian Light Horse FFA.
Set to start from barrier one, the Shannon Price-trained five-year-old held on for third behind Leap To Fame in the Newcastle Mile when resuming from a spell and will tackle this Saturday night’s event second-up.
With the choice of drives on Sure Thing Captain or his stablemate Speak The Truth, Adam Sanderson has opted to take the reins on the pole marker, with Cam Hart gaining the drive on Speak The Truth from gate eight.
Sure Thing Captain is no stranger to success on the big Menangle deck, with four wins in 11 attempts.
The gelding is two from two over the 2300 metre journey.
Victory will be well-deserved should he claim the win, with the strength of the Miracle Mile meaning this race is a strong contest also.
Millionaire pacer Dont Stop Dreaming is the early favourite, with the Nathan and Mark Purdon-trained pacer to run from gate two for driver Kate Gath.
Other hopes include dual Group 1-winner Captains Knock, Bulletproof Boy, Dangerous and Captain Hammerhead.
