DEXTER NZ'S No.1 DRIVER

Dexter Dunn, Kentuckiana Lodge and NZ's No. 1 harness driver, is well on track to become the youngest NZ reinsman to drive 1000 winners.

Despite  having his 20th birthday at the beginning of September, Dexter continues to re-write the record books.

The gifted reinsman has already won the NZ Drivers Premiership twice and carried that form into some of Australasia's richest races in 2009.

In August he reined Smiling Shard to win the $A311,000 Australasian Breeders Crown 2YO colts and geldings Final at Tabcorp Park, Melton, Victoria, then in December returned to the same venue to land his biggest win yet, the $A400,000 SEW Eurodrive Victoria Cup with a perfectly timed run from the trail behind Bettor's Strike.

This was his first Victoria Cup drive and came on the back of a luckless 2nd at his first New Zealand Cup drive, reining Bettor's Strike for a close 2nd to Monkey King in the $1 million Cup at Addington.

Dexter may well have won the cup if he hadn't been squeezed up at a vital stage by Karloo Mick running out on him when working into the clear at the 200m.

Between the NZ Cup and the Victoria Cup, Dexter also reined Bettor's Strike to win (later changed to a dead-heat) in the $A60,000 Cranbourne Cup, then added the $A125,000 Tasmania Cup to his list of spoils in late December 2009.

His achievements last season earned him the 2009 Canterbury Sportsman of the Year title over All Blacks captain Richie McCaw and Black Sticks defender Bradley Shaw.

Dexter enjoyed remarkable success in the 2008-09 season with a staggering 204 wins, 139 seconds and 120 thirds from 1263 starts, driving the winners of $1,951,274.

His 204 winning tally was a record for both the harness or thoroughbred codes, eclipsing Maurice McKendry's 161 wins for harness, and Lisa Cropp's 197 wins in a season for thoroughbreds.

Dexter was in terrific touch at season's end winning the major 2YO NZ races with champion juvenile Smiling Shard.

Following in the footsteps of his father Robert, who had worked for Cran Dalgety's father Jim (winning the 1976 Auckland Cup with Bolton Byrd), Dexter and Cran are proving a formidable team wherever they have runners.

Dexter is again setting a frenetic early pace for the 2009-10 title.

He is also regularly driving at North Island and southern meetings this season, increasing the chances of another record-breaking season.

THE DEX FILE . . .

AGE: 20.
FAMILY: Parents Robert and Rose, brother John, sister Laura.
PREVIOUS EMPLOYERS: Andy Gath, Gavin Lang.
FIRST DRIVING WIN: The Ultimate One, Geelong, Victoria, September 2006.
CAREER DRIVING WINS: 357 (as at end of 2008-9 season, including 3 Aust. wins).
BIGGEST THRILL: Winning the 2009 Victoria Cup with Bettor's Striike & Australasian Breeders Crown 3YO Final with Smiling Shard.
BIGGEST WIN: $A400,000 Victoria Cup (Bettor's Strike).
BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: Band On The Run getting disqualified after winning a maiden at Addington in April, 2009.
BEST HORSE SEEN: Mainland Banner.
BEST HORSE DRIVEN: Smiling Shard.
FAVOURITE TRACK: Addington, the best and fairest track, and only 10 minutes from home.
FAVOURITE HORSE: Smiling Shard.
MOST HILARIOUS THING SEEN ON THE TRACK: A crash in West Australia in late August where most runners came down.
FAVOURITE FOOD: Mum's roast.
SPORTING INTERESTS: Touch rugby, indoor netball. Came on as impact player for Canterbury when defeating the North in the annual Horsemen's rugby challenge this year.
FAVOURITE MUSIC ARTIST: Dean Martin.
FAVOURITE TV SHOW: Two And A Half Men.
NEXT AMBITION: To drive the winners of $2 million in stakes in a season.
NAME THREE PEOPLE YOU WOULD LIKE TO HAVE DINNER WITH: Charlie Sheen, George Clooney and Charlize Theron.
ANYTHING YOU WOULD LIKE CHANGED IN HARNESS RACING: Drivers having their own colours.

Dexter Dunn's 2008-2009 season.
August 3, 2009.

Champion driver Dexter Dunn finished the season on 204 wins, a feat which no other driver or jockey in New Zealand has achieved before. HRNZ reflects on the facts and figures of Dunn’s 2008/09 season.

Season Snapshot

1263 starts, 204 wins, 139 second, 120 thirds, $1,951,274
Dunn set new NZ Records for both the highest number of starts and wins
Previous harness racing record – 161 wins, Maurice McKendry, 1988/89 season
Thoroughbred racing record – 197 wins, Lisa Cropp, 2004/05 season

With 20 or more starts for a trainer, Dunn’s best record was for his father, Robert.
– 29 starts, 5 wins, 4 seconds, 6 thirds, UDR 0.3947

Following the Dalgety and Dunn success, it comes as no surprise that Dunn’s most successful horse partnerships were with Dalgety runners.
6 wins – Smiling Shard, Band On The Run, Diomedes

Six times this season Dunn won four or more races at one meeting. His very best day however came in Dunedin in mid-July as the countdown to 200 was on.
Forbury Park, 14 July 2009 – 8 starts, 6 wins, 1 second. Five wins came in consecutive races.

Dunn’s most successful track was Addington Raceway with over a quarter of his wins taking place there.
His Addington record – 371 drives, 56 wins, 45 seconds, 32 thirds
Oamaru’s grass track provided him with his best UDR of 0.4861 with three wins from one meeting.
For more than one meeting at a track, Cambridge was his best with a UDR of 0.3987.
Dunn’s worst UDR came from the tracks in the North Island. He returned from his one visit to Manawatu Raceway with no wins, making it the only track he competed on but did not win on.
Dunn felt his unluckiest track was Alexandra Park. A record of 50 starts, 2 wins, 3 seconds, 7 thirds and UDR of 0.1200 backs up his claims.

Through the season punters backed Dunn’s ability heavily. Here are the stats:
Highest win dividend – $24.10, Merchiston, Westport, 28 December
Highest place dividend – $8.60, Mahjac Meddle, 12 October
Average win dividend – $4.48; Average place dividend – $2.09
If you had put $5 each way on every horse Dunn drove, you would be down $3,889.60. This could be attributed to the short odds punters backed his drives into.

Dunn won two Group 1 races during the season, both with Smiling Shard. The two stakes from the Garrard’s Sires Stakes 2YO Final and the Robbies Bar and Bistro Ashburton 2YO Emerald assisted in Dunn’s overall stakes for the season, an impressive $1,951,274, the third highest single season total in history.

There is one record which eluded Dunn by only 24 hours this season – the Fastest to 100 Wins. Set by McKendry on the 14^th February 1989, Dunn reached 100 wins this season on the 15^th February 2009.

* Universal Driver Rating – a calculation to rank drivers/trainers using their starts, wins and placings

One award was kept secret from Dexter and was presented by John Mooney from the NZ Standardbred Breeders’ Association (NZSBA) on behalf of the three Kindred Bodies – the NZSBA, NZ Trotting Owners Association and the NZ Harness Racing Trainers and Drivers Association.

Dexter was presented the 2009 Outstanding Achievement award for his amazing success, dedication and hard

‐work this season. He was presented with a beautifully framed photo of his 200th win salute along with a very fitting citation as below:

"Dexter Dunn distinguished himself through his outstanding achievements as a licensed horseman and ambassador for harness racing. Dexter drove 204 winners in the 2008/09 season. His balance, poise, and relaxed driving style is a rare talent, used well. In just three years Dexter has achieved: the New Zealand record for wins by a driver or a jockey; the youngest driver of a Group One race; the youngest junior driver to win 100 races in a season; and the first junior driver to win $1 million in a season.

His professional attitude, work ethic, courteous demeanour and exemplary behaviour are admired inside and outside of harness racing. These distinctive accomplishments reflect great credit upon himself, his family, his employer, his workmates and New Zealand harness racing."

Dexter hasn’t slowed down at all after his phenomenal success last season, he has started the 2009 season leading the Drivers’ Premiership and posted three wins at Rangiora’s meeting on Sunday.

The three Kindred Bodies wish Dexter all the best for the coming season and will be watching his progress with much interest.

Courtesy of Kiely Buttell, Executive Manager, NZSBA