Best of the best arrive for the World Drivers Championship
Matt Markham - Raceform • November 1st, 2025 9:00 AM • 3 min read
Ten of the best drivers in the world are set to converge on New Zealand this week in search of global glory when the World Drivers Championships begin on Sunday at Kaikoura.
Held over 20 heats on four New Zealand tracks over the course of 10 days, the championships are set to shine the spotlight on one of New Zealand racing’s biggest periods with the final heat of the series held on IRT New Zealand Trotting Cup Day at Addington on November 11.
Rapidly closing in on 3,000 career driving wins, with just two left to reach the mark and join Tony Herlihy, Maurice McKendry and Ricky May as the fourth member of the elusive club, Orange will not only be the hometown favourite, but logical favourite for punters too given his intimate knowledge of tracks, horses and form heading into the series.
“It’s a tough competition, everyone competing is a very good driver,” Orange said.
“I get a bit of a leg-up in the fact I’ll know the form, the horses and the tracks and crucially our style of racing here, but you’ve still got to go out there and get the job done.”
And while it will be Orange carrying the silver fern throughout the series, it might be his closest neighbour who has the most to say when the series begins at Kaikoura on Sunday.
Australia’s Gary Hall Jnr has landed three great drives in the opening three heats in impressive last-start winner Hoof It Hagrid and then exciting trotting mare Midnight Diamond before jumping aboard three-year-old Spirit Downunder in the last heat of the day.
Two further heats will be held on Monday at Kaikoura again, followed by heats in Cambridge, Addington and Winton before the final appearance and a new champion is crowned on Cup Day.
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