Paws of Thunder

Group 1 · Wentworth Park · Australia · 520m · January (summer carnival) · Sydney summer feature

About the Paws of Thunder

The Paws of Thunder opens the Sydney Group 1 calendar each January, run over Wentworth Park's famous 520 metres as the feature of the summer carnival. Despite its holiday-season slot, the race carries genuine prestige: summer racing in Sydney has always attracted serious sprinters building towards the autumn, and the Paws of Thunder honours roll features champions who went on to dominate the season. For punters it is the first Group 1 handicap of the Australian calendar year and traditionally one of the most bet-on greyhound races of the summer.

How to punt the Paws of Thunder

January form needs careful reading: many Paws of Thunder contenders are resuming from short Christmas spells, so trial form and fresh-sectional history matter as much as recent race form. The 520m trip at Wentworth Park in midsummer usually produces a firm, fast track, which favours genuine early speed — dogs that need rain-affected or heavy conditions to show their best are poor bets here regardless of class. Watch for the Victorian and Queensland raiders; interstaters with genuine Group 1 claims often arrive under the betting radar in January because the market focuses on Sydney's summer regulars. Historically this race produces generous quinella and trifecta dividends because the favourite is frequently a Sydney sprinter whose summer form flatters it.

Wentworth Park track profile · Latest Wentworth Park results

More Group 1 races

• Melbourne Cup — Sandown Greyhounds, Australia
• Golden Easter Egg — Wentworth Park, Australia
• Million Dollar Chase — Wentworth Park, Australia
• Sandown Cup — Sandown Greyhounds, Australia
• Bold Trease — Sandown Greyhounds, Australia

Frequently asked questions