Race name to honour the late Rex Cochrane

Gore Racing Club officials want to further honour Rex Cochrane who died at age 93 in Ashburton Hospital on November 4. The club has named a race after him at its next meeting.

Rex Cochrane.

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The Gore Racing Club is naming a race at its meeting next Saturday after one of the town's best trainers.

The Rex Cochrane Memorial will be a rating 75 race over 1800m. 

Club officials want to further honour Cochrane who died at age 93 in Ashburton Hospital on November 4. His career win tally was 1486 when he retired in 1994 after nearly 40 years of training.

Rex Cochrane at a Gore race meeting in 2014 with his daughter and son-in-law Robyn and Bevan Wilson. Photo: SOUTHPICS

Cochrane's daughter, Robyn Wilson, of Ashburton, will be at the Gore race meeting, along with other family members.

Wilson said she was "delighted" that a race at Gore would be named after her father.

On three occasions Cochrane won the New Zealand trainers' premiership. He was the first to record 1000 training wins in NZ when Palimony won at Waimate in 1980.

In 2014 Cochrane was inducted into the NZ Racing Hall of Fame.

Saturday week's race meeting is the GRC's main race day of the season, with feature events being the $80,000 Gore Guineas, $50,000 Gore Cup and $50,000 open 1200m.

Cochrane trained three winners of the Gore Guineas - Chook A Rook (1983), Hunting Call (1979) and Ellery Jane (1975).

His seven wins in the Gore Cup were with Fiery Filou (1978), San Ardo (1977), Red Ruby (1975), Haste Ye Back (1972), Atomic Flight (1971), Glocco Morra (1969) and Happy Day (1967).

Glenturret, held by trainer Rex Cochrane, with owners Graeme and Lorraine McKenzie and jockey Terry Kennedy after winning the Listed $18,000 John Grigg Stakes at Ashburton in 1991.

The GRC is considering building a memorial oncourse to honour Cochrane and fellow Gore trainer Ted Winsloe, who died in 2001. Winsloe trained the winners of 1212 races and like Cochrane, won feature races throughout the country. 

Meanwhile, the Southland Racing Club named one of the races at its meeting on December 16 the Rex Cochrane Memorial Handicap.

In other racing news, Riverton filly Lady Sass is contesting the Group I $500,000 Cambridge Stud Levin Classic at Wellington on Saturday.