‘Modern marvel’ in full flight
The Harrovian shows why he’s ‘extra special’
THE Harrovian: a horse of a lifetime in north Queensland.
What the star Stephen Massingham-trained gelding has achieved over the past two years, it just does not happen in horse racing.
Call him a freak, or maybe a legend, brand him whatever you want – but we will not see a horse like The Harrovian in this part of the world for another generation or two.
The Harrovian took all before him in 2019, winning three major NQ Cup races over the staying trip.
And, this year, he deduced to have some fun, attack the shorter distances, yesterday afternoon winning the Cairns Newmarket (1400m) in dominant fashion.
He did not only win the feature Weight for Age Newmarket race in FNQ, The Harrovian did it first-up from a spell, not going around since late April before yesterday.
The Harrovian’s recordbreaking resumé does not stop there, there is more to come.
He is still unbeaten on Cannon Park, winning his eight starts at Cairns’ track.
And, all in all, the sevenyear-old is 10 victories from 12 starts in the north of Queensland, with two minor placings at Townsville’s Cluden Park.
The Harrovian is a marvel, a horse that people will talk about decades from now and boast that they were at Cannon Park to see the champion go around.
Horses just do not win staying features and then drop back and win 1400m events just 12 months later, it is as rare it comes.
For Massingham, who has trained winners for fun over the past 24 months, The Harrovian is something else, he is extra special.
While he might not be a horse of a lifetime for owner Tom Hedley, who had Tolga Tornado Tyzone win the Stradbroke Handicap earlier this year, Massingham, who has been in the north for 30 years, says he has not seen a horse quite like The Harrovian before.
“For me, he is a horse of a lifetime, Tom may have a better one in Tyzone, but at least we are chipping away trying to catch him,” Massingham said.
“He is our horse of a lifetime. Words cannot describe what he has done and what the horse has meant to our families.
“The horse means everything to me, he is a horse of a lifetime, we had Magnum Forty Four, but he does not go as well as this fella.”
The Harrovian tale is an amazing one, he has battled a number of injuries over the journey, including a recent eye concern, but he keeps fronting up and winning in the most dominant fashion.
“It was enormous what this horse has done, considering how much time he has had off in the paddock, it is a fantastic effort from a training perspective and the horse,” Hedley said.
“He got back second last and once the little fella started moving forward, it was pretty exciting.
“The last 12 months, it has been excellent with my race horses, Tyzone, but this horse, he is just as special what he has done.”
In the run, The Harrovian got way back, but top rider Aidan Holt did not panic, pinching runs just before the home turn and went bang down the outside fence to score in eye-catching fashion.
Holt even had enough time to give the Cairns Cup Day crowd a big salute as he approached the line.
“Just knowing the horse, he was always travelling well enough even though we were a little far back, when I asked him for an effort, he just put them away,” Holt said.
“It has been a long while coming for me personally, it is good to win a feature race up in the north, where I am originally from.
“It is good to do it for the Massingham family, they have done so much for me and I am so glad I could repay them.”