Maiden win after 36 years!

NEARLY four decades after gaining his licence, Michael Azzopardi has broken his maiden status.

A licence holder “on and off” since 1985, Azzopardi registered his initial success when Abbracciami was triumphant in Ballarat last night.

Along with training Abbracciami, Azzopardi bred, owns and drove the trotter.

Azzopardi’s “on and off” status includes a break from the industry between 2005 and 2008, another from 2009 to 2015 and again from 2016 to 2021!

“I’m more relieved than happy,” Azzopardi said. “I’ve been in the game a long time and put a lot of money into it.

“My brother used to knock around with a few harness people and that’s how I got the bug. My parents eventually got me a pony, then I started knocking around with a few guys who had horses and it went from there.

“I’ve been in horses pretty much all my life, but they’ve always taken a backseat when something else has come up.

“It wasn’t until I got a trotter about six years ago and started breeding her to some top stallions that I got serious.

“After seeing the European trotters in Malta and then in France about 15 years ago I knew I wanted to have trotters as oppose to pacers.

“I was trying to buy the right broodmare in Australia, but everyone wants telephone number prices which were unreasonable.

“Eventually I got his dam, Another Starlet, at Carl Middleton’s dispersal sale six years ago.

“She’s still breeding on and I just got a positive test for her in-foal to Elite Stride today.”

After leading from barrier three Abbracciami was shuffled back to be two-back along the pegs as White Star Whizz and Goodtimedonthesash worked to the front.

Not content to be locked away, Azzopardi angled the three-year-old away from the pegs to find the lead at the bell.

Striding clear at the top of the home straight, Abbracciami was untouched to score by 28-and-a-half metres from Goodtimedonthesash.

Miss Broomfield was three-and-a-half metres away third in 2:04.4 over 2200 metres.

“I got my driver’s licence in the mid 1980s and did some trials, but that was the first time I have driven in a race,” Azzopardi said.

“I was a nervous going on to the track, but once we started our warm up I was fine.

“This is my first winner as a trainer and driver, but I had one as an owner named Thats Final which was with Gavin Lang.”