GRNSW Auction Rebirth A Boon For Industry

THE passage into first time greyhound ownership will never have been easier with Greyhound Racing NSW (GRNSW) announcing the rebirth of a lucrative Puppy Auction to be staged at Richmond in May.

And with a race series with a prize pool exceeding $200,000 attached to the Auction, GRNSW CEO Rob Macaulay said he's confident the event will generate a groundswell of interest from all facets of the industry, including breeders, established syndicators and first time owners.

"The Auction and race series is timed perfectly for our upcoming announcement of a new syndication initiative," he said.

"There has never been a better time to get involved in the sport with prize money at record levels, and with a new syndication model imminent this will provide the ideal, easy entry point for newcomers who want to get into the sport. 

"While we have had steady growth in syndication participation over the past few years, we expect that to surge with the introduction of the Auction and Race Series."

Slated for Sunday, May 26, the GRNSW Puppy Auction, designed to be an easy and transparent entry point for people into the sport, will see pups whelped between July, 2023 and January, 2024 go under the hammer.

And while a race series with a first prize of $150,000 has been revealed exclusively for graduates of the Auction, Macaulay said incentives don't stop there, with plans to further expand on the event in years to come.

"As well as the prizemoney on offer, there will be a number of bonuses for breeders, with $1,000 paid to the breeder of the winner, and $250 to the breeder of each of the other finalists of the GRNSW Auction Race Series," Macaulay added. 

"Breeders will also receive a bonus of $500 for each pup that has its first race start in NSW, and a bonus of $500 for each pup that has its first race win in NSW."

Until more recent times, Puppy Auctions have played a successful role in the sport, with Dapto and Richmond flying the flag admirably.

While the Auction will be held at Richmond, the venue for the race series is yet to be determined. The series will consist of heats, semi-finals (if required) and a final, and prizemoney allocation for the heats and semi-finals will be in line with the current TAB Non-Graded class prizemoney schedule – or its equivalent – irrespective of how many heats and or semi-finals are conducted.

"While Puppy Auctions have been very successful in the past, I think with the current prizemoney levels in the sport, and such a lucrative series attached to this auction, we are likely to see some spirited bidding come May 26," Macaulay said.

Some of the sport's biggest stars have been graduates of these Auctions, including names the ilk of Toll Security, Flying Ricciardo, Thirty Talks and Mister Twister.