Smoken Up, Blacks A Fake, Melpark Major, Monkey King, Auckland Reactor and Kiwi Ingenuity are the current horses to have accepted their invitation to the $500,000 event.

Held at Menagle raceway, the Miracle Mile has attracted two of the biggest harness racers in Victoria with SEW Eurodrive Victoria Cup winner Melpark Major and Australia’s fastest pacer Smoken Up.

Although Melpark Major narrowly lost in last year’s event, trainer Alan Tubbs in confident that the past 12 months of training will give the horse a great chance to make up for last year’s disappointment.

Meanwhile Smoken Up is looking at his third invitation to the Miracle Mile and is in good form after placing third to Monkey King in the New Zealand Cup.

Trainer Lance Justice believes the horse is ideally suited to the race and if he can succeed, it will be Smoken Up’s first victory in a major Australasian harness race.

Either way, Justice is confident that with the event held at Menagle Park, the Miracle Mile may become the fastest race in Australian history.

Three-time Inter Dominion winner Blacks A Fake and New Zealand Cup champion Monkey King have also confirmed their place in the mile event however up until today Mark Purdon was unsure as to whether he would let Auckland Reactor contest in the event.

Champion driver Tony Herlihy confirmed the horse’s place in the Miracle Mile after revealing that he would take over from Purdon as driver to allow the trainer more time to focus on the $4 million horse’s training.

Herlihy has driven the horse once for his only victory in Australia however the successful New Zealand driver has won the Miracle Mile three times already with Christopher Vance (1991) and Chokin (1993,94).

Confirming their attendance at the event only today was the Kiwi Ingenuity team and trainer/driver Robbie Holmes is ecstatic about the mare’s prospects in the Miracle Mile.

As the fastest mare in Australasia, Kiwi Ingenuity stands a great chance during the race if she draws well in her first Miracle Mile.

Despite a torrid seventh place behind Monkey King in the New Zealand Cup, the fastest mare in the southern hemisphere proved her ability as a miler in last year’s 4 year old Diamond on Harness Jewels Day in New Zealand.

The mare ran a 1:52.1 mile over 1609m, a time which put her up there with Smoken Up.

While the New Zealand hopefuls will travel from Christchurch to Sydney on Thursday 26 November, the final places for the Miracle Mile will be decided after the running of Friday night’s Cordina Chicken Sprint at Harold Park.

Coming head to head in the final 100 meters of the race, Saucy Legend and Lonestar Legend were five lengths clear of the field however barrier one-drawer Saucy Legend pulled out halfway down to the post to win by a neck victory in 1 minute 53.8 seconds.

Lonestar Legend finished the first quarter in a quick 27.6 seconds followed by a slightly more relaxed 30.2 second quarter and a 28.4 third quarter.

The Newcastle Mile victory has given Saucy Legend his seventh consecutive win and it was also the race’s third fastest finishing time in its 20 year history.

Saucy Legend was ridden by Fitzpatrick’s youngest son Cameron while older brother Black rode Lonestar Legend to second place.

Third son Gavin rode Lombo Pocket Watch to finish in seventh place however local horse Best Of Times finished a good third and was beaten by just over eight metres.

As the winner of the Newcastle Mile, Saucy Legend and his connections have now been invited to the Miracle Mile however Fitzpatrick and the horse’s owner are not so keen on the idea.

While the horse has had a great racing season, he is not yet ready to take on the likes of Blacks A Fake and Melpark Major.

Instead, Saucy Legend will be aimed at the Bohemia Crystal Free For All during the Miracle Mile program and next year’s goal will be the Inter Dominion.

The 1760m event will be held at Harold Park this Friday night and is expected to attract a huge crowd as the winner of the event will receive an automatic invitation to the SEW Eurodrive Miracle Mile.

Diamonds N Furs is a serious contender for the event while Paul Fitzpatrick’s Lombo Pocket Watch is hoping to redeem himself after his seventh place in Saturday’s Newcastle Mile.

Cordina Sprint Order of Entry