With the box draw conducted on track last Sunday for the $25,000 Federal Hotel Anniversary Cup final (512 metres) to be run on Sunday, Ben Divirgilio couldn’t have been happier after Utter Madness came up with box two.
Trained at Lewiston by Nicole Price, Utter Madness had drawn box seven in the first of five heats. Divirgilio, together with Maddie Schulz, made the trip down to handle Price’s runners but had expressed some concern over the wide draw.
But he needn’t have worried. Going out of the first turn, the black and white dog was in front and from then on never looked in any danger of defeat when defeating All Mucked Up by three lengths in 29.60 seconds – the second-fastest of the heats.
By Aussie Infrared out of Easy Choice, Utter Madness, formerly based in Victoria, joined the Price kennels in October last year. He has now won a further 17 races on SA’s four tracks.
Fastest time in the Anniversary Cup heats was recorded by Paw Winder, who had been coming off an unplaced run behind Organised Crime in the Group 2 Horsham Cup final over 485 metres.
Trained at Avalon by Rebecca Gibbons, the son of Orson Allen and Yahiro Bale settled in second spot early from box three before taking the lead down the back straight from another Price runner in Nola Keeping.
And Paw Winder, who goes into the final as the youngest runner, finished off the race strongly for a 4¾ length win over the early leader in 29.54 seconds.
Handling the winner was Mark Johnson, back with the Gibbons team after a stint out on his own. Actually, back in 2023 he handled the Mount Gambier Cup winner in Titan Blazer for them.
The Anniversary Cup, first conducted in 1985, is also nothing new to him either. Back in 2024, when training in his own right, Johnson won the local event with Fireworks.
Back at Tara Raceway again last Sunday was Lara trainer Danielle Smith with Gorringe who ran third in the final of this year’s Mount Gambier Cup in April.
Away fairly from box three in the second heat, the daughter of Bernardo and Patriot Earhart moved into second spot behind tearaway leader Destroying before finishing strongly in the run home for a 4¼ length win over High Cube in 29.89 seconds.
And flying the flag for the locals is Compton trainer Tracie Price who won the final heat with Compton Gold – the daughter of Beast Unleashed and Minnie Banjo leading all the way for a 5¼ length win over Prison Break in 29.91 seconds.
He also has Statue Of Time engaged in the final and will be looking to add to an already impressive Anniversary Cup record. In 2020 he was successful with Spring Cuervo and then followed up in successive years with Tandiki and Giant’s Flash.
Never Ever Late ran right up to his name in heat four of the cup after settling well back from box five in the early stages of the race. But the blue dog finished the race off strongly when defeating Statue Of Time by 1¾ lengths in 29.98 seconds.
He’s owned and trained at Anakie by Josh Formosa who still recalls his first visit to Tara Raceway as a six-year-old.
Boasting interesting bloodlines, Never Ever Late is by Irish sire Ballymac Cashout. His dam, Cool Bourbski, is a daughter of Fernando Bale x Bourbski Fever and a winner of 19 races and $138,000 in prize money.
Meanwhile, earlier in the day three heats of the John Reid Memorial Maiden/One Win series were run over 305 metres. The first two placegetters in each heat advanced to Sunday’s final.
In the first heat, Costly Habits, a son of Hooked On Scotch and Emerald Hill – who took 21 starts to open his winning account back in May – quickly found the front from box five before running out a 5¼ length winner over Bourne Reagan in 18.00 seconds.
Stepping in for Rowsley trainer Matt Lanigan was his father Gerald who handled Canya Guru in the second heat for Adelaide owners The Triple Bogeys Syndicate.
Having his fifth start after winning a maiden at Shepparton in early July, the son of Bernardo and Cayenne Model virtually led all the way from box seven when scoring a 4¾ length win over Saint Kylie in 17.79 seconds.
Hamilton-based Lorraine Goodwin, who trained the winner of the first heat, was successful again in the third and final heat with the Matt Kerr owned Magpie Spice, a daughter of Fernando Bale out of One More Burn.
Having her fourth start, the white and black bitch was always on the pace from box one and in a keenly contested finish Magpie Spice held on to beat Mary Lee by a nose with a further head back to Inga Noah in 18.25 seconds.