High five for Chloe Butler

The heroics of Chloe Butler from Warwick on November 10 deserve recognition.

The Darling Downs Harness Racing Club meeting staged on the grass track of Allman Park was a day Butler shouldn’t forget anytime soon.

The gifted young driver landed five of the seven races on the day.

Butler, 21, scored with Fancy Like Barbie, Always Be A Torque, Bling The Luck, Targaryen and Leithen Burn.

Three of her winners were prepared by her father Jack (Bling The Luck, Targaryen and Leithen Burn) while Lachie Hart prepares Always Be A Torque. Butler prepares Fancy Like Barbie herself.

The main race on the program was the Warwick Gold Cup and Butler landed the feature after combining with Targaryen.

But the most emphatic performance came via her final winner on the day when Leithen Burn produced a Herculean like performance to win after galloping late in the score-up and losing the best part of 40m before chasing down its rivals to score.

Interestingly, all winners that day were handled by female drivers with Lola Weidemann (Strutty) and Paige Bevan (Ace Lombo) picking up the other races.

Butler finished sixth (Gotta Go Torque) and fourth (Mount Hercules) in the races she didn’t win.

“It was an amazing day. You never dream of going to a race meeting and getting five winners or more, like let’s be real, you go there hopeful that all horses will perform to their best but to actually do it is quite surreal,” Butler said.

“I was so relieved when Barbie scored in the opening race, that was her maiden victory and as a result, she finally secured her all-important 1^st win QBRED bonus at start number 44.

"Lachie’s mare won well while all of Dad’s horses went super.”

Butler boasts over 400 career victories after launching her life in the race bike during the 2018/19 season.

Her best season came via the 2022 season when she landed her maiden century season with 107 wins.

Driving five winners at a single meeting is a massive achievement.

The list of drivers to achieve this feat on a Queensland track includes: Nathan Dawson (four times), Bill Dixon (two), Grant Dixon (nine), Trista Dixon (one), Alan Donohoe (one), Tim Gillespie (one), Shane Graham (two), Peter Greig (one), Darryl Gross (two), Les Hartley (one), Garry Lefoe (one), John Manzelmann (one), Luke McCarthy (four), Pete McMullen (four), Mat Neilson (one), Chris Petroff (one), Natalie Rasmussen (one), John Rix (one), Brett Towns (one), Julie Weidemann (one), Lola Weidemann (six) and Paul Zimmerlie (one).

So, Butler becomes just the fifth female driver to achieve the feat joining Trista Dixon, Natalie Rasmussen plus Julie and Lola Weidemann.

The record by an Australian female driver with five or more wins at a single meeting belongs to Bathurst-based Amanda Turnbull, who has achieved the feat on 18 occasions while South Australian Danielle Hill sits second with 15 and legendary Victorian Kerryn Manning is third having notched the feat 12 times.

Those three female drivers are the only three drivers to have reached double figures with this feat.

North American-based Lauren Tritton sits fourth having achieved the feat nine times previously while Lola Weidemann (six) rounds out the Top Five list.

And as far as Queensland female drivers that have driven four winners at a single meeting, this list includes: Trista Dixon (one), Narissa McMullen (six), Taleah McMullen (one), Michelle McNichol (one), Lyn Paton (one), Kylie Rasmussen (five), Natalie Rasmussen (three), Julie Weidemann (five) and Lola Weidemann (26).

Those numbers do not include the five-win hauls achieved by Trista Dixon, Natalie Rasmussen, Julie Weidemann and Lola Weidemann.

Lola Weidemann landed three driving quartets at Northern New South Wales tracks, twice at Tamworth and once at Armidale.

The most wins by a female driver in a single season belongs to Kerryn Manning with 371 victories during the 2002/03 season.

Manning also holds the record for most wins in a single season at Metropolitan level with 101 wins during the 1999/2000 season.

And Dannielle Hill holds the record with six wins at a single meeting having achieved the feat five times while Manning has recorded the feat three times.

Some other records include:

• The first female driver to win a metropolitan race was Pearl Kelly at the WACA Ground in Perth back in 1912.
• The first female driver with a 2:00 performance was Roma Pocock who partnered Royal Gaze in a time trial at Bendigo back in 1978 when rating 1:58.3.
• The first female driver to record a sub 2:00 winner was Margaret Frost when combining with All Humour in a time of 1:59.3 at Harold Park back in 1981.
• The first female to drive an Inter Dominion Grand Final winner was Natalie Rasmussen aboard Blacks A Fake at Hobart back in 2006.
• The first female to drive an Inter Dominion Trotting Grand Final was Kate Gath aboard Tornado Valley at Melton back in 2018.
• The first female to drive a Miracle Mile winner was Kellie Kersley aboard Norms Daughter at Harold Park back in 1996.
• The first female to drive a New Zealand Cup winner was Kerryn Manning aboard Arden Rooney at Addington back in 2015.
• The first female to drive a Derby winner was Anne Frawley aboard Vanderport at Harold Park back in 1985.

The youngest female driver to drive to the entire program is tied between a pair of Queenslanders with Janine Pitt (Innisfail, 1981) and Michelle McNichol (Mackay, 1986) who were both 26-years-old.

And the record for most winners combined by female drivers was set at Ararat back in 2005 when Kerryn Manning (six) combined with D’Arne Bellman (one) and Brooke Hansen (one) at the eight-race program.

Hoofnote: The record by an Australian driver for five wins or more at a single meeting belongs to champion West Australian Gary Hall Jnr who has achieved the feat 32 times. His nearest rival is Chris Alford who has achieved the feat 20 times.

*Statistical data obtained by Harness Racing Australia (HRA).