2025 Australian Racing Hall Of Fame inductees announced featuring colourful and enduring legends of the turf

The 2025 Australian Racing Hall Of Fame inductees have been announced and some of the turf’s greatest heroes will be recognised at a Queensland ceremony on August 31. Hydrogen and Mahogany were named as the two horses to achieve the honoured status, while trainer Peter Moody, jockey Zac Purton and media personality John Tapp will also be celebrated. A two-time Cox Plate winner, Hydrogen stamped himself as one of the hardiest customers through a time where horses like the venerable Tulloch were at large. The robust stallion was only a neck shy of becoming the first horse to take three Cox Plates having been beaten in 1951 as a three-year-old. His breadth knew no bounds, scoring 26 victories from sprinting 1200m events to endurance tests over 3200m. Mahogany’s dominance over his three-year-old counterparts was palpable, winning the Victorian, Australian and Queensland Derbies in a whirlwind season. His durability became apparent later in his career as he triumphed as a sprinter in the Lightning Stakes and George Ryder, taking a total of eight Group 1s in his racing tenure. Knockabout Aussie Peter Moody, best known for his heroics training equine immortal Black Caviar, has also prepared other well-known conveyances such as Typhoon Tracy, Dissident and Incentivise. He will be celebrated for a “career built on resilience and brilliance, carving a legacy as one of Australia’s greatest modern-day racing minds”. Purton has become one of the great riders of the current era and is most recently associated with Hong Kong racing where he has now won seven jockey premierships. However, his mastery in the saddle has long been present ever since landing the Sydney title in the 2003/04 season and continues to ride as well as ever. Long-time racing followers will immediately be able to associate the dulcet tones of John Tapp calling several champions of the turf home in the nation’s big races. 33 years behind the microphone means Tapp will be bestowed the revered title for “enduring excellence, utmost dedication to his craft and his ability to bring the magic of racing into our homes”.