The New Zealand Cup for standardbred horses, also known as either the New Zealand Trotting Cup or the New Zealand Pacing Cup is a

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...

(G1)

harness A harness is a looped restraint or support. Specifically, it may refer to one of the following harness types: * Bondage harness * Child harness * Climbing harness * Dog harness * Pet harness * Five-point harness * Horse harness * Parrot harness * ...

race held annually by the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club at

Addington Raceway Addington may refer to: Places In Australia: * Addington, Victoria In Canada: * Addington, Ontario * Addington County, Ontario (now Lennox and Addington County, Ontario) * Addington Highlands, Ontario * Addington Parish, New Brunswick * Ad ...

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

, New Zealand. It is generally considered the country's most prestigious harness racing event. The race is held during Show Week on the second Tuesday in November, three days before the Show Day public holiday. The

New Zealand Free For All The New Zealand Pacing Free For All is a major New Zealand harness race. It is notable as it is a Group One championship sprint race and has been won by nearly every champion pacer in New Zealand. History of the race Horses which have won the ...

is held on Show Day. The public holiday in Christchurch is the observance of the Canterbury Anniversary Holiday (16 December in reality). The race meeting, along with the

New Zealand Cup The New Zealand Cup is a thoroughbred horse race run at the Riccarton Park Racecourse in Christchurch. New Zealand Cup week The New Zealand Cup is raced on the final Saturday of Christchurch "Cup week" held each year in the second week of Novem ...

for thoroughbreds and greyhounds, forms part of Canterbury's carnival week, along with the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Show. Until 1999, the A&P show was held at showgrounds adjacent to Addington Raceway. The New Zealand Trotting cup is considered as Canterbury's biggest day on its social calendar. Many flock to Addington for the glitz and glamour of the event, rather than the horse racing.

Cup history

Three horses have won the race three times, they are

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

False Step False Step was a New Zealand Standardbred racehorse. He is notable in that he won three New Zealand Trotting Cup races, the richest harness race, and sometimes the richest horse race in New Zealand. False Step is one of three horses to win the ...

and

Terror To Love Terror To Love (foaled 21 October 2007) is a New Zealand standardbred racehorse. He is best known for being a three-time winner of the New Zealand Trotting Cup, in 2011, 2012 and 2013. He was trained by Graham and Paul Court. Breeding Bred by Ter ...

. False Step later went to the United States where he beat the acknowledged American champion of the time,

Adios Butler The horse Adios Butler, also known as "The Butler" (1956–1983), was a North American harness racing champion. Background Sired by the great Standardbred Adios and out of an obscure broodmare named Debby Hanover, Adios Butler was trained by ...

. A number of horses have won the race twice including

Harold Logan Harold Logan was a New Zealand bred Standardbred pacer that won two New Zealand Trotting Cups. He was a leading performer in 1931 and 1932. In 1932, he won the New Zealand Trotting Cup with a handicap of 60 yards. Pedigree Harold Logan was b ...

and

Highland Fling The Highland Fling is a Solo dance, solo Scottish highland dance, Highland dance that gained popularity in the early 19th century. The word 'Fling' means literally a movement in dancing. In John Jamieson's 1808 ''Etymological Dictionary of the Sc ...

who both won their second cups off the very large handicap of 60 yards and Lazarus. In 1929, 1930 and 1931 the New Zealand Cup was run with heats: a first division and second division and then the final. The 1962 New Zealand Cup days was one of the few days when there has been rain on the Cup day. This was the year that

Lordship A lordship is a territory held by a lord. It was a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas. It originated as a unit under the feudal system during the Middle Ages. In a lordship, the functions of econ ...

beat the hot favorite

Cardigan Bay Cardigan Bay ( cy, Bae Ceredigion) is a large inlet of the Irish Sea, indenting the west coast of Wales between Bardsey Island, Gwynedd in the north, and Strumble Head, Pembrokeshire at its southern end. It is the largest bay in Wales. Geograp ...

. In 1963 Cardigan Bay who is arguably New Zealand's greatest ever horse won the Cup and also won the

Inter Dominion :''for winners of the Inter Dominion see: Inter Dominion Pacing Championship and Inter Dominion Trotting Championship'' The Inter Dominion is a harness racing competition that has been contested since 1936 in Australia and New Zealand. It is ...

in Australia. Cardigan Bay, in association with

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

master reinsman Stanley Dancer went on to become the first million dollar winner in the sport's history. A common feature of the race is the inclusion of Australian trained runners, including the winners: * Steel Jaw in 1983, * Lightning Blue in 1987, and * Arden Rooney in 2015. The 2008 running of the race was won by Changeover, driven by David Butcher and trained by Geoff Small, in a then race/world record time (1.58.8-mile rate). The race was delayed by over 6 minutes due to fractious horses and a damaged wheel to one of the favoured runners. After being slow away, Butcher moved forward to lead, and soon after took a trail behind one of the other favourites, Baileys Dream. In an exciting finish, Butcher used the passing lane to pass Baileys Dream, with Report for Duty third for Anthony Butt (who was trying for 3 wins in a row in the NZ Cup). It was another dream result for the ATC Trotting Syndicate, who own the horse. The last horse home, favoured runner Monkey King, was credited with a time of 3.58.7, which was fast enough to have won every prior NZ Cup, except the 2007 running, won by

Flashing Red Flashing Red is a brown Australia bred Standardbred racehorse that was foaled in 1997. He is notable in that he won both the Auckland Pacing Cup and two New Zealand Trotting Cups. These races are the richest harness races in New Zealand. He wa ...

equaled the record for most wins in 2013, having won the previous two years. Despite breaking stride at the start of the race, giving the leaders a 15-length head start (about 37m or 3 seconds), Terror To Love made up the distance slowly and worked towards the front, taking the lead in the back stretch of the final lap. The horse managed to hold off late-charging runners to record the unusual win by a head. The race announcer called the race the greatest win in the New Zealand Trotting Cup's history. At the time it was the second fastest New Zealand Cup, behind the 2008 win by Changeover. The 2015 running of the New Zealand Cup was won by Australian-based horse, Arden Rooney, driven by

Kerryn Manning Kerryn Manning (born 10 July 1976) is an Australian horse trainer-driver and a world champion reinswoman in the sport of harness racing. Early life Manning was born in Melbourne, Australia to Peter and Barbara Manning. Her father, Peter Manning, ...

. It was the first time in the history of the race that a female had driven the winner. After a great start, Arden Rooney was given a leisurely time in front and with a last half-mile in 55 seconds under a vigorous drive, gave little else a chance to catch it. Subsequently, the driver was given a two-week suspension and $1000 fine for "Excessive use of whip". It was her second fine for a similar offense in New Zealand within 8 days. In 2016 the race was run and won by the dominant Purdon/Rasmussen training combination, with their champion horse Lazarus. It was won in a very fast time in completely dominant fashion by 10 lengths, running 3.53.1 for the 2-mile event (a mile rate of 1.57.2). The Purdon/Rasmussen combination filled 3 of the first 4 finishing positions. Lazarus returned to win the Cup the following year. In 2016, the ZM Body Art final was held at the Trotting Cup. New Zealand Cup day will generally attract over 20,000 people at the race course. However, in 2021 the crowd was unable to attend due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Stake money

The stake or total prize money for the New Zealand Cup has fluctuated over the years: * 1940 – 2500 pounds * 1950 – 7500 pounds * 1960 – 6750 pounds * 1970 - $25,000 * 1980 - $100,000 * 1990 - $375,000 * 2008 - $1.2 million * 2009 - $1 million * 2010 - $750,000 * 2011 and 2012 - $600,000 * 2013 - $650,000 * 2020 - $540,000 * 2021 - $631,500

Records

Most wins: * 3 -

(2011, 2012, 2013) * 3 -

(1958, 1959, 1960) * 3 -

(1934, 1935, 1936) Most wins by a driver: * 7 - Ricky May (1989, 1997, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013) * 6 -

Cecil Devine Cecil Charles Devine (23 March 1915 – 4 July 1990) was a driver of standardbred racehorses in New Zealand. He drove many winners of major races in New Zealand. His greatest achievement was winning the New Zealand Trotting Cup, New Zealand's pre ...

(1951, 1956, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1979) * 6 -

Mark Purdon Mark Purdon is a driver and trainer of standardbred racehorses in New Zealand. He was associated with many champions and is one of the leading trainers and drivers of harness horses in New Zealand and Australasia. He was inducted into the Inter D ...

(1995, 1996, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2020) * 4 - James “Scotty” Bryce (1916, 1925, 1926, 1933) * 4 - Todd Mitchell (1999, 2002, 2003, 2004) * 4 -

Peter Wolfenden Peter Tom Wolfenden (24 January 1935 – 18 February 2023) was a New Zealand driver and trainer of Standardbred racehorses. He is most notable for his victory in the New Zealand Trotting Cup when he drove New Zealand's top pacer Cardigan Bay. He ...

(1963, 1965, 1970, 1977)

Race results

The following are the winners and place getters.Wood, Bernie (1981). Flying Sulkies - History of the New Zealand Cup 1904-80. Moa Publications, Auckland. * won the

same year

Other associated races

The horses that contest the New Zealand Cup often compete in various traditional lead in races. The winner of the New Zealand Cup is usually one that wins or performs strongly in these races. On the Friday following the New Zealand Cup, Canterbury Anniversary day, many of the same horses will contest the

Top horses who did not win the New Zealand Cup

The list of New Zealand Cup winners includes many of the best horses New Zealand has produced as well as some great Australian horses. However, some very distinguished horses that have attempted but failed to win the Cup include: *

Auckland Reactor Auckland Reactor is a New Zealand standardbred racehorse bred by Dr. Tony & Anne Parker. He was crowned New Zealand Horse of the Year in two seasons. He was also given the nickname The Reactor Factor because most Trainers supposedly feared him. ...

Caduceus The caduceus (☤; ; la, cādūceus, from grc-gre, κηρύκειον "herald's wand, or staff") is the staff carried by Hermes in Greek mythology and consequently by Hermes Trismegistus in Greco-Egyptian mythology. The same staff was also ...

* Delightful Lady *

Elsu Elsu (foaled 19 December 1999) is a black New Zealand bred Standardbred pacer who won the Australasian Pacers Grand Circuit Champion and was twice the New Zealand Horse of the Year. He was sired by Falcon Seelster out of Interchange by New Y ...

* Master Musician * Robin Dundee * Roydon Glen * Smoken Up *

Tiger Tara Tiger Tara (foaled 23 October 2010) is a New Zealand bred Standardbred racehorse that raced at the very top level in both New Zealand and Australia. He is notable in that he was voted Australian Harness Horse of the Year for the 2019 season and ...

Young Quinn Young Quinn, a New Zealand standardbred racehorse, was successful in period where his competition in the sport of trotting was particularly strong. Foaled in 1969, he was by Young Charles out of Loyal Trick by Hal Tryax (USA). Named after Brian ...

References

{{reflist * http://www.hrnz.co.nz * http://www.tab.co.nz * http://www.nzcupandshow.co.nz/2006/ChristchurchCasinoNewZealandTrottingCupDay.asp * https://web.archive.org/web/20100814015637/http://www.ers.dol.govt.nz/holidays_act_2003/dates/2006_9.html

External links

Full Details of all races

2008 Cup race replay - Changeover
Australasian Grand Circuit Races Harness racing in New Zealand Horse races in New Zealand New Zealand Trotting Cup winners