Racing: Smoken Up to miss Addington feature

Smoken Up driven by Lance Justice. File photo / Greg Bowker

Lance Justice New Zealand's greatest harness race is set to be an Aussie-free zone with early favourite Smoken Up to miss the New Zealand Cup.

His absence is in no small way because of the prolonged inquiry into his positive drug test after winning the Interdominion title in Auckland in April.

A hearing into Smoken Up's post-Interdominion positive for DMSO will be heard in Wellington in two weeks' time, with his connections set to defend the charges.

The Herald understands they may use a defence suggesting the DMSO got into Smoken Up's system through contamination, rather than through administration by anybody associated with the great pacer.

But the positive and the resulting inquiries have left Smoken Up's trainer Lance Justice upset with New Zealand officials and he says he is reluctant to return here.

"There's no NZ Cup for him [Smoken Up] this year," Justice said. "I've spoken to the owners and we've ruled out the race.

"I'm unhappy with the way we have been treated with the whole Auckland swab thing, but the owners are even more upset - they are ropeable.

"I doubt I'll race a horse in New Zealand again."

The decision could also be influenced by the New Zealand Trotting Cup dropping to $600,000 this year, which doesn't look so attractive when the strong Australian dollar is taken into account.

But while Addington bosses would have loved to have had Smoken Up there, the biggest loser out of the decision will be the horse himself.

The New Zealand open-class stocks have rarely been weaker and Smoken Up would be a hot New Zealand Cup favourite in any early markets.

The wonderful Kiwi-bred pacer returned with a near-track record win at Melton last Friday night and if he is to miss the New Zealand Cup his Miracle Mile defence later in November will become his main priority.

He isn't the only pacing star dodging a transtasman campaign, with South Auckland pacer Gold Ace having pulled out of this week's Australasian Breeders Crown semifinals.

The Harness Jewels and New Zealand Derby winner was to have been at Melton this Friday but trainer Steven Reid pulled the pin on the trip after a substandard private workout at Cambridge last Thursday.

"He has simply had enough for the season," said Reid.

"He didn't work up to his best last week and there is no point going over there to take on Sushi Sushi unless we are 100 per cent.

"So he can have a spell now and be set for the 4-year-old races."

Also missing from the ABC will be last season's three-year-old final winner Devil Dodger.

He bolted in at Alexandra Park last Friday but his connections have opted to stay home and set him for the New Zealand Cup, rather then return to Victoria for the ABC four-year-old series.

One Kiwi pacing star who will be there though is the Ian Small-trained filly Cowgirls N Indians, who has drawn perfectly at barrier two in her semifinal on Friday night.

She looks the best chance of a New Zealand-trained pacing winner at the ABC Super Sunday meeting next week, although the Kiwis look certain to dominate the trotting divisions.