Leap To Fame adds Nullarbor to farewell campaign

ALL-TIME great Leap To Fame’s last year of racing could be his biggest yet.

In a surprise and exciting move, leviathan owner Kevin Seymour confirmed Leap To Fame would chase another first in his remarkable career when he heads to Perth for the $1.25 million Group 1 Nullarbor next year.

The Nullarbor at Gloucester Park on April 23 and the $300,000 Group 1 Fremantle Cup a week later will be two of the seven remaining major races Leap To Fame will target before being retired to stand at stud next year.

The others are the $NZ800,000 NZ Cup in Christchurch on November 10, $250,000 Blacks A Fake at Albion Park (December 5), $250,000 Hunter Cup at Melton (February 13), $1 million Miracle Mile at Menangle (March 13) and $1 million Brisbane Inter Dominion final at Albion Park (July 17).

Seymour said the opportunity to chase a new goal and showcase Leap To Fame to a different audience in WA was a huge lure.

“We’d be crazy not to make the trip,” he said. “He can race in two great races in the space of a week for $1.55 million. And the Nullarbor is the biggest open-class slot race in this part of the world.

“If look back through his career, it’s always been our policy to create the chance for as many people as possible to see him race in the flesh and to generate interest in the sport with his superstar status.

“Everyone I’ve spoken to said they’ll look after us well in Perth and that the people will absolutely love having him over there.”

It was RWWA’s Head of Harness Racing and Special Projects, Cam Brown, who sold the Nullarbor idea to Seymour and convinced him to buy a slot in the race.

“We’re thrilled. Leap To Fame is a horse that transcends racing codes,” Brown said. “He is the greatest standardbred of the modern era and one of the most admired racehorses in Australia, regardless of code.

“His participation in the Nullarbor and Fremantle Cup will generate enormous public interest, significant national media coverage and provide a tremendous opportunity to showcase WA harness racing on the national stage.”

Gloucester Park chief Mick Radley said his “dreams had come true” with confirmation Leap To Fame was Perth-bound.

Not only has Leap To Fame never been west, but his Queensland trainer-driver Grant Dixon has not taken a horse there in his 35-year career.

“We’ve had some great horses cross the Nullarbor in my time, including Lazarus to win the Inter Dominion a few years back, but Leap To Fame coming is next level,” Radley said.

“WA fans have watched in awe as he’s produced some amazing performances to win the biggest races around Australia and NZ, but to have him here in the flesh will be amazing. It’s just so exciting.

“The people of WA will turn out in force to see him in the flesh, not just once but twice. It’s no secret we’ve been desperate for him to come.”

The other big name confirmed for the Nullarbor is the Mick Harvey-owned Kingman, who has beaten Leap To Fame three times.

The Perth trip came on the radar for Leap To Fame and Kingman when New Zealand scrapped a $NZ1 million slot race at Cambridge, which Leap To Fame has won the past two years. Previously, the Cambridge race essentially clashed with the Nullarbor.

Leap To Fame has won a staggering 72 of 92 starts. Incredibly, he has only been unplaced twice, both times luckless in fourth spot

His $6,530,863 of prize money is almost $2 million more than another other Australasian pacer with Blacks A Fake ($4,575,438) next best.

His biggest wins include two Inter Dominions, two Miracle Miles, a Hunter Cup and two $NZ1 million Cambridge slot races.

Leap To Fame, who shares the record number of Australasian Group 1 wins on 16 with Westburn Grant Lazarus, will return from a spell in race four at Albion Park on Saturday night.

“He had a good break and everything at home says he’s as good as ever,” Dixon said. “We’d love to get three or four runs into him before going to NZ about a week or so before the Cup.”

“We’ve had some great horses cross the Nullarbor in my time, including Lazarus to win the Inter Dominion a few years back, but Leap To Fame coming is next level,” he said.

“WA fans have watched in awe as he’s produced some amazing performances to win the biggest races around Australia and NZ, but to have him here in the flesh will be amazing. It’s just so exciting.

“The people of WA will turn out in force to see him in the flesh, not just once but twice.

“It’s no secret we’ve been desperate for him to come. We (Gloucester Park) have worked with Cameron Brown from RWWA to make it a reality.”

Radley explained it was Brown, RWWA’s Head of Harness Racing and Special Projects, who convinced Leap To Fame’s owners, Kevin and Kay Seymour, to buy a Nullarbor slot for their champion.

“They have been fantastic to deal with. Absolute professionals and once I outlined the travel and racing options, they were onboard pretty quickly,” Brown said.   

The Perth trip came on the radar when New Zealand scrapped a $NZ1 million slot race at Cambridge, which Leap To Fame has won the past two years. Previously, the Cambridge race essentially clashed with the Nullarbor.

Leap To Fame has won a staggering 72 of 92 his starts and only been placed twice.

His $6,530,863 of prize money is almost $2 million more than another other Australasian pacer with Blacks A Fake ($4,575,438) second.

His biggest wins include two Inter Dominions, two Miracle Miles, a Hunter Cup and two $NZ1 million Cambridge slot races.

Leap To Fame will return from a spell at Albion Park on Saturday week.

His first big target this campaign is to win the iconic NZ Cup for the first time at Addington on November 10. He ran second to fellow Aussie pacer Kingman in the race last year.

“He had a good break and everything at home says he’s as good as ever,” trainer-driver Grant Dixon said. “We’d love to get three or four runs into him before going to NZ about a week or so before the Cup.”

 

By Adam Hamilton for Harness Racing Australia