John Tapp Racing

01/01/2026

Syndication puts more than 200 horses a year into NSW stables. Harry Lawton pioneered the concept for groups of 6 owners. Hyperion Thoroughbreds came along to cater for much larger syndicates. We repost a podcast with co Hyperion founder Allan Gainey.
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SkyRacingAU

Great to chat with a man who co-founded Hyperion Thoroughbreds, one of the very earliest racehorse syndication companies in Australia. We find out what Allan’s been doing since a crippling recession brought Hyperion’s operation to a halt in 1990.

31/12/2025

Bert Bryant’s name comes up so often in racing conversations that a review of his great broadcasting career is always relevant. We revisit a 2018 tribute to the man still regarded as the “funniest race caller ever”.
https://buff.ly/RdqhQaa
SkyRacingAU

Whenever I find myself in the company of older racing fans you can bet at least one of them will find a way to bring up the name of Bert Bryant - the legendary Melbourne race caller.

30/12/2025

This week we share the Bert Bryant tribute again and on the podcast we re-run our interview with co Hyperion founder Allan Gainey. Brought to you by . View the stories at www.johntapp.racing

Bert Bryant’s name often comes up when older racing fans reminisce about the race callers of yesteryear. I can recall standing on the fringe of the interstate betting rings on Sydney tracks watching punters rock with laughter as they listened to a Bert Bryant call. His quips became legendary in Australian racing and did exactly what Bert intended them to do - make the thrill of backing a winner even more enjoyable or help ease the pain of backing an “also ran”.

Bert’s very first race call was heard on radio 2DU Dubbo from a nondescript meeting at Geurie in 1948. His audition tape would later land him a job as assistant to Tom Moon on 3UZ in Melbourne. When Moon succumbed to the ravages of asthma in 1949, the little bloke from Dubbo was elevated to the top job. The story of his sudden illness and premature retirement in 1977, and the comeback he wished he’d never made will sadden you deeply. I was moved to pay my tribute to the broadcasting legend when the website began in 2018. I feel equally moved to give it another run over this holiday period.

Speaking of re-runs, we’ve delved into the podcast archives to come up with one of my favourites from 2021. Our guest is Allan Gainey whose love of racing led him to a bold new venture in the 1970’s with workmate Terry Mulhall. Together they created Hyperion Thoroughbreds, one of the earliest racehorse syndication companies in Australia.

Allan was in reminiscent mood as he looked back on the $700 horse who got the new enterprise off the ground. Some talented horses and magical moments followed over the next sixteen years. Allan and Terry were gutted in 1990 when the company became a victim of the recession described by then Treasurer Paul Keating as the “recession we had to have.” At a time of year when many of us get a little sentimental, let’s give pioneer syndicator Allan Gainey a shout out.

25/12/2025

On the podcast is hard working Dubbo trainer Dar Lunn. He rode over 700 winners before turning to training in 2012. Some serious injuries and the ravages of stroke haven’t slowed him down. A good yarn with a top bush horseman.
https://buff.ly/CniAMlA
SkyRacingAU

It’s always a pleasure to talk to a dedicated bush trainer from any part of the nation. This week we go to the busy training hub at Dubbo and to one of its most respected participants.

24/12/2025

Early days Paul and Martha Cave despaired of The Mona Lisa ever winning a race. Despite encouraging trackwork the mare didn’t fire a shot at her first five starts. Saturday’s Midway win was her fifth in 14 starts.
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SkyRacingAU

“We were all getting a little despondent when The Mona Lisa didn’t run a place in her first five starts,” said Martha Cave.

23/12/2025

This week we profile The Mona Lisa and trainers Martha and Paul Cave. On the podcast, we welcome country trainer Dar Lunn. Brought to you by . View the stories at www.johntapp.racing

After her first five winless race starts, The Mona Lisa was looking unlikely to draw any further attention to her iconic name.

However, co-trainer Martha Cave had seen something in the mare’s trackwork and was convinced she would soon put it all together. Martha was right! The mare’s all the way win in Saturday’s Midway was her fifth from only fourteen starts. Add a couple of placings and The Mona Lisa has banked $161,000.

Martha shares the story of the 2021 online purchase of her dam Skyerush who was carrying the Under The Louvre filly to be later named The Mona Lisa. The improving mare has been a work in progress from the outset. Her unpleasant disposition around the stable and an aversion to float travel have presented Paul and Martha Cave with many challenges. Their patience is finally paying off.

Always a pleasure to bring the bush trainers to the podcast. This week we’re joined by Dar Lunn who works a team of just ten horses from his stables on the Dubbo racecourse. From a family of jockeys, Dar has spent his entire life in and around the racing game.

In a riding career spanning three decades he posted more than 700 winners on country tracks in NSW. He turned to training in 2012 and has maintained a healthy strike rate ever since. Dar talks about injuries sustained when kicked by a young horse in 2011 and the ravages of the stroke he suffered just over two years ago. A pleasant yarn with a respected bush horseman.

18/12/2025

We join the many other platforms to pay tribute to Ray Thomas following his retirement after 35 years with the Daily Telegraph. He was a sports mad kid who fell in love with racing when captivated by a radio call of the 1971 Caulfield Cup. Ray’s on the podcast.
https://buff.ly/rr0KYNV

Ray Thomas’ recent decision to quit his high pressure role triggered a flood of tributes for the hugely popular media identity.

17/12/2025

Training duo Richard and Will Freedman won races on three tracks over the weekend. The stable’s best result was a win with Pocketing at Randwick. Richard says a week on the family farm worked wonders with the Yulong gelding.
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“This kid has a very rare talent,” was co-trainer Richard Freedman’s comment after Braith Nock’s win on Pocketing in Saturday’s Bob Ingham AO Hcp at Randwick.

16/12/2025

This week we profile Pocketing and trainers Richard and Will Freedman. On the podcast, we welcome recently retired Daily Telegraph Racing Editor Ray Thomas. Brought to you by . View the stories at www.johntapp.racing

Richard and Will Freedman have developed a very workable training operation since joining forces in 2022. Will manages a forty horse team at Rosehill Gardens with his dad in attendance on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Richard lives on his 200 acre farm “Yellow Rock” at historic Broke in the Hunter Region.

Whenever one of the Rosehill based horses appears in need of a “freshen,” off to the farm it goes. Richard has the job of readjusting the mindsets of up to twelve horses at a time. Pocketing showed the benefit of a recent “sea change” on the property by scoring impressively at Randwick on Saturday. We caught up with Richard over the weekend.

Many sections of sports media have paid tribute to ace journalist Ray Thomas following his recent retirement from the role of Daily Telegraph Racing Editor. I’d like to add my sentiments about Ray’s stellar career by having him as a special guest on this week’s podcast.

The Ray Thomas story is almost as spellbinding as some of the great racing tales he’s penned over 35 years with the famous tabloid. Let Ray take you back to his early life in Hong Kong and a move to Perth with his family at age 7. His early fascination with Aussie Rules and cricket was slowly overtaken by a burgeoning passion for horse racing - a passion inflamed by the impact of one particular race call in 1971.

11/12/2025

In this week’s podcast we take a trip down memory lane with 91 year old Inverell trainer John Berger. Those who were around in John’s time remember him as an astute horseman whose horses always came first.
https://buff.ly/dqTXynO

My thanks to Luke Berger who suggested we should take a trip down memory lane with his grandfather John, who’s remembered as one of the best country trainers of his generation.

10/12/2025

The crowd was small at the Kenso meeting last Friday, but it seemed like Everest day to Canberra trainer Rob Potter who saddled up his first winner at the historic precinct. Rob talks about the training change that has given Laurel Hill a new lease of life.
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“Even though the race was run on the Kensington track I’m claiming it as my first Randwick win,” said Canberra trainer Rob Potter

09/12/2025

This week we profile Laurel Hill and her trainer Rob Potter. On the podcast, we welcome former trainer John Berger. Brought to you by . View the stories at www.johntapp.racing

The TAB Hcp on the Kenso track last Friday afternoon attracted very little attention in racing circles, but it meant the world to Canberra trainer Rob Potter. The former farrier has won 160 races in ten years of training, but this was his first success at historic Royal Randwick albeit on the inside circuit.

Rob’s milestone moment was provided by six year old mare Laurel Hill who made it back to back wins. Rob explains a recent change in the mare’s training routine which has had the desired effect. We profile the very interesting background of the farrier turned horse trainer.

I’ve always enjoyed the reminiscences of veteran trainers. This week we’re joined on the podcast by 91 year old John Berger who spent his 35 year training career in the New England region of NSW, winning many races on a wide range of tracks.

John never got to train a top class galloper but made the most of every opportunity to come his way. Many jockeys and trainers from John’s era speak highly of his training skills. My thanks to his grandson Luke Berger who suggested I should talk to the veteran horseman. It’s a great trip down memory lane.