Racing: Kiwis on track for Breeders Crown

New Zealand's assault on the Australasian Breeders Crown will step up a gear tonight.

While Paramount Geegee will launch his campaign in a race at Geelong, for most Kiwi trainers what happens at the semifinal barrier draws this morning will be far more pivotal.

Cambridge trotter Paramount Geegee will start a hot favourite even from his second-line tonight, with trainer John Dickie to do the driving.

He meets former Kiwi trotter The Bohemian and if Paramount Geegee wins he will almost certainly be favourite for his division of the ABC finals at Melton in 12 days.

He is automatically qualified for his final, as is fellow New Zealand trotter Miami H, who won easily against older horses in Victoria on Saturday night.

But the New Zealand pacers in the series face potentially tricky hurdles at Melton on Friday night.

They must finish in the first five in their semifinals to be guaranteed their spot in the rich finals on August 22.

Regardless of draws, that should be a formality for the likes of 3-year-old filly De Lovely, who would be around $1.40 even this far out to win herfinal.

The draw is far more important in the 3-year-old male pacing division, where the Kiwis could end up getting in one another's way.

While the Australian contingent is not strong the four New Zealand reps - Smiling Shard, Franco Jamar, Courage To Rule and Devil Dodger - add such depth to the series it would be easy for one to be unlucky and miss a final spot.

Harness Jewels winner Major Mark will contest a juvenile semifinal on Friday and was flown to Victoria on Sunday night having not been seen in public since winning his two-horse heat of the series at Cambridge four weeks ago.

"He could be a little on the fresh side going into his semifinal but it should bring him on nicely for the final," said trainer Mark Purdon.

* Waikato junior driver Simon Lawson has capped a remarkable year with a dream come true on Sunday.

Lawson, who finished second on the national junior drivers' premiership last season, secured a drive at Hambletonian Day at The Meadowlands in New Jersey on Sunday.

Lawson is on a working holiday in the United States and got to partner a longshot pacer - albeit with no success - in the last race on the biggest day in world harness racing.

That saw Lawson score-up right alongside harness racing's all-time leading stake-winning driver, John Campbell.

The highlight of the epic day's racing was the win of Muscle Massive in the US$1.5 million Hambletonian.

He out-finished favourite Lucky Chucky in 1:51 for the mile, the second-fastest time in Hambletonian history.

Muscle Massive is by Muscles Yankee, who has made such a huge impression with small crops in this part of the world but is available to New Zealand breeders again this season, via semen transport.