Frankie Major is comfortably holding Throwyaarmsaroundme at the finish. PHOTO: Megan Liefting./Race Images.
Frankie electric off the gate to take Magness Benrow spoils in the slush at the Park
By Barry Lichter • 31 December 2023
Lincoln Farms’ owners John and Lynne Street were delighted to close out the harness racing season with a win by Frankie Major at Auckland tonight.
It was Frankie Major’s third win of the season for the stable - second only to Lincoln River’s 2023 haul of four - and came, appropriately, in the Magness Benrow Pace.
“I’m rapt we won this race because it’s sponsored by John Magness whom I have admired for years as a businessman,” John Street said. “He’s 78 and a legend.”
The architect of the win, the 29th harness success of the year for Lincoln Farms - including six in Australia - was undoubtedly Alexandra Park’s leading reinsman Zachary Butcher.
Owner John Street, right, thanks sponsor John Magness, left, after Frankie Major’s win.Trainer Ray Green revealed it was Butcher who suggested an aggressive gate drive in the heavy, rain-affected going, despite his six alley.
“Zac said we should have a dab for the front. He got there easily and kicked sand in their faces.”
From the cockpit, Butcher rated the Art Major three-year-old to perfection and held out a home stretch challenge from the favourite Throwyaarmsaroundme by a length, having only to run closing sectionals of 59.6 and 30.8 for an overall time of 2:43.9 for the 2200 metres.
It was Butcher’s fourth win on the colt and his sixth in all, which, along with nine seconds and three thirds boosted his stake earnings to $86,200.
“He’s always been a nice little horse,” said Green of the $60,000 2021 Christchurch yearling buy.
“He was a standout when we got him going, because he was such a natural and did everything right.”
Pipped a nose on his two-year-old debut, Frankie Major butted heads early with some talented age group horses but Green said, on the whole, they’d tried to protect him from the Merlins and Don’t Stop Dreamings of the harness world.
“And he responded by slowly but surely maturing. He just took a while to strengthen but he’s now a versatile tradesman and I knew the wet track wouldn’t worry him.”
Tonight’s win brought to 17 the number of individual pacers who won races for Lincoln Farms this season, the most prolific Lincoln River (four), Frankie Major (three) and Copy That (three).
The undoubted highlight of the season was that by Lincoln River at Alexandra Park in June, when John and Lynne Street brought up their 1000th win as owners. It was their 573rd harness win to go with 427 with gallopers.
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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.”
