Johnny Lincoln dashes up the lane and holds out the late-closing favourite Allamericanplayer. PHOTO: Megan Liefting/Race Images.
$10,000 weanling Johnny Lincoln surprises again with fifth win over white hot blue blood
By Barry Lichter • 21 February 2026
Johnny Lincoln continued to surprise co-trainer Ray Green with his narrow hat-trick win over white hot $1.28 favourite Allamericanplayer at Auckland on Friday night.
“Not bad for a cheap little weanling,” Green declared after the $10,000 buy staved off Stonewall Stud’s $155,000 yearling Allamericanplayer.
“I’m sure if he’d paced properly he would have beaten us but this game is all about winning.”
Like most punters, Green thought Allamericanplayer was a lay down to win, despite sitting in the breeze in his first start for three months.
How Johnny Lincoln looked as a $10,000 weanling.
Allamericanplayer was an impressive $155,000 yearling.But when the imposing Bettor’s Delight - Goodlookingbabe colt started pacing roughly turning for home and driver Tim Williams was forced to take hold, it was advantage Johnny, who sprung from the trail and held off the late closing favourite to score by a neck.
Though Allamericanplayer obviously wasn’t at his best, Green took confidence from the fact the Telfer-trained pacer won last season’s Welcome and Sapling Stakes and was only a head behind Freeze Frame in the Sires’ Stakes Final.
“I don’t know if Johnny is up to the best - it’s a big step-up to that level - but we’ll see how he goes, he probably deserves a crack at them.
“He hasn’t given me derby vibes yet but he’s tough and, who knows, he could keep surprising us. I originally thought he was pretty good, but more a tradesman than brilliant. I didn’t envisage him doing what he has.”
What Johnny has done is win five times and rack up six placings in only 17 starts, banking an impressive $67,420 for owners John and Lynne Street, Ian Middleton, Green himself, the Four Legs Syndicate, Duncan Chisholm and Kathy James, the Athenry syndicate and the estate of Margaret Rabbitt.
A chunk of that came from his win in a $35,000 Metro Final on January 30 and, after his heat win on Friday night, the gelding’s next immediate target is another $35,000 Metro Final at Auckland on February 27.
Green, who said the Lather Up youngster “oozed class” at the 2023 weanling sale, likes the fact he’s out of Ima Megastar, a daughter of Lincoln’s Megastar, who was a full sister to Sir Lincoln.
Sir Lincoln remains the all-time best performer for Lincoln Farms with his 21 wins, an Auckland Cup and $544,239 in earnings.
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Ray’s comments
Friday night at Cambridge
Race 1: Spirited Belle
4.46pm
Delany: “I saw she’d been punted but somebody must know something we don’t as I’ve been working her myself and, while she feels all right and hasn’t put the boot in like at Auckland, I think she’ll need the run. She hasn’t got any high speed but feels like she will stay. She has improved a bit but I’d be surprised if she won.”
Race 1: Lincoln Maree
4.46pm
“It’s always hard from these draws but she’s a tough mare who will make her own luck at some stage. She’s going well enough - her drivers have all been happy - and she’s a little warrior who tries like hell.”
Race 2: Major Copy
5.12pm
“He’s only two and very inexperienced but he feels like a good colt and there’s a lot of improvement in him. He certainly caught a lot of people’s attention last time. I don’t know how good he is yet but he’ll be right there.”
Race 2: Prince Lincoln
5.12pm
“If he can lead without having to do too much work I can’t see anything beating him. I thought he went great last start. He pressed the winner hard ’til the corner then just flattened out in the run home, but he had every reason to do that after all the work he’d done.”
Race 4: Spirit Of God
6.12pm
“She’s been undone by bad draws. If she led easily from three she’d be hard to beat as she’s a good front-runner.”
Race 4: Spirited Peggy
6.12pm
“We’ve had her for only two weeks but she’s seven now and has had her chance to win one. She has a bit of speed but I think she gets pulling so we’ve got the Hidez (compression) hood on her and plugged her ears up.”
Race 6: Copy N Paste
7.10pm
“We won’t see the best of him for another six months. He’s been a slow developing horse but is improving all the time and getting stronger.”
Race 6: Jessie Lincoln
7.10pm
“If I was having a bet on one of them in the race it would be her. She deserves to win one. Her last two have been really good - she just ran into one who was a bit slicker last time in Major Copy.”
Race 6: Lincoln Dealer
7.10pm
“He’s a bit one-dimensional - you’ve got to feed him track and let him run - so the second row draw is a big handicap. To his credit I was surprised he finished so close last time after all the work he did. When he gets a decent draw and crosses them they’ll know they’re at the races. He’s got a big motor and tries hard.”
Race 8: Rivergirl Bella
8.08pm
“She clawed her way to the front last time but had nothing left at the finish. That won’t happen this time and she should lead easily from one.”
Race 8: Angelic Copy
8.08pm
“She’s had terrible draws but has been going good races. The others last time were just better than her but this is a big drop in class. With the right trip she could get some of it at huge odds.”
Race 9: Sugar Ray Lincoln
8.35pm
“He’s not quick away from a stand but he won’t muff it completely. He steps from the front line and Peter Ferguson was quite happy with his last run.”
Race 9: Lincoln Wave
8.35pm
“He bombed the stand the first time but to be fair all those horses were rushing up at him from the back and that panicked him a bit. He’s on 10 metres this time so that won’t happen.”
