Honour Roll
TOP GUN SPRINTERS
Listed below are the past Top Gun winners since the race commended in 1993.
| Date | Winner | Trainer | Dist | Boxes | Margin | Time | Runner-up | Track |
| 1993 | D/H for 1st = Golden Currency (K. Mugavin) & Worth Backing (C. Haas) | 511m | 1,4,5 | D/H x Neck | 30.56sec | Revealing (3rd) | SAN | |
| 1994 | New Fox (NSW) | D. Reid | 511m | 7,2,3 | 2-1/2L | 29.98sec | Rusty Lee | OLP |
| 1995 | Rapid Hiker (VIC) | P. Newman | 511m | 1,5,3 | 4L | 29.80sec | Tenthill Doll | SAN |
| 1996 | Wylie Boy (VIC) | G. Rose | 515m | 4,2,8 | 3/4L | 30.09sec | Oak Raider | SAN |
| 1997 | Chicago Blue (VIC) | B. Furness | 515m | 4,3,7 | 2L | 30.00sec | Awesome Assassin | SAN |
| 1998 | Rapid Journey (NSW) | J. Carruthers | 515m | 1,8,7 | Head | 29.85sec | Reggemite | SAN |
| 1999 | Mint Magic (NSW) | R. Watson | 518m | 6,1,7 | 10L | 29.97sec | Sweeping Storm | MEA |
| 2000 | Placard (NSW) | R. King | 515m | 7,1,3 | 4-3/4L | 29.92sec | Droopys Zola | SAN |
| 2001 | No Intent (VIC) | J. Thompson | 525m | 1,6,7 | 2-1/4L | 30.17sec | Toll Security | MEA |
| 2002 | Lindale Blue (WA) | C. Bainbridge | 515m | 5,4,6 | 4L | 29.76sec | Excite Ability | SAN |
| 2003 | Bombastic Shiraz (VIC) | D. Cairns | 525m | 5,2,7 | 3/4L | 30.06sec | Spring Secret | MEA |
| 2004 | Whisky Assassin (VIC) | J. Thompson | 515m | 8,4,7 | 9L | 29.40sec | Regal Ricky | SAN |
| 2005 | Black Enforcer (QLD) | T. Brett | 525m | 5,4,3 | 2-1/2L | 30.02sec | Sun Hero | MEA |
| 2006 | Jaimandy Coops (VIC) | P. Donohue | 515m | 5,2,1 | 4-3/4L | 29.60sec | Train A Journey | SAN |
| 2007 | Meticulous (VIC) | M. Briganti | 525m | 1,4,7 | 1L | 29.88sec | Run’s House | MEA |
| 2008 | Regal Thyme (VIC) | G. Long | 525m | 9,8,7 | 2-1/4L | 30.09sec | One Tree Hill | MEA |
| 2009 | Cindeen Shelby (VIC) | K. Greenough | 525m | 2,1,6 | 1-1/2L | 29.75sec | Velocette | MEA |
| 2010 | El Grand Senor (VIC) | C. Jones | 525m | 4,7,5 | 4-1/4L | 29.83sec | Enry Walt | MEA |
| 2011 | Allen Harper (VIC) | G. Bate | 525m | 7,6,4 | 4L | 29.82sec | Radley Bale | MEA |
| 2012 | David Bale (VIC) | G. Bate | 525m | 9,5,3 | Head | 29.92sec | Desalle Bale | MEA |
| 2013 | Dyna Nalin (WA) | P Stuart | 525m | 8,1,5 | 3.17L | 29.90sec | Peter Rocket | MEA |
| 2014 | Buckle Up Wes (TAS) | T. Medhurst | 525m | 5,3,6 | 2.13L | 30.02sec | Oakvale Destiny | MEA |
| 2015 | Fernando Bale (VIC) | A. Dailly | 525m | 1,2,8 | 0.38L | 29.57sec | Kayda Shae | MEA |
| 2016 | Dundee Osprey (VIC) | G. Scott Smith | 525m | 8,2,1 | 3.11L | 29.98sec | Aston Bolero | MEA |
| 2017 | Up Hill Jill (VIC) | D. Geall | 525m | 7,2,6 | 3.43L | 29.89sec | Aston Dee Bee | MEA |
| 2018 | Poke The Bear (VIC) | S. Thompson | 525m | 6,5,4 | 5.96L | 29.74sec | Hasten Slowly | MEA |
| 2019 | Get Git Gizmo (VIC) | H. Manolitsis | 525m | 2,5,8 | 2.77L | 30.08sec | Feral Franky | MEA |
| 2020 | Shima Shine (VIC) | A. Dailly | 525m | 2,8,4 | 2.47L | 29.67sec | Simon Told Helen | MEA |
| 2021 | Aston Rupee (VIC) | G. Rounds | 525m | 2,6,1 | 1.40L | 29.66sec | Tiggerlong Tonk | MEA |
| 2022 | Photo Man (VIC) | G. Clifton | 525m | 9,3,4 | 2-1/4L | 29.91sec | McInerney | MEA |
| 2023 | Transponder (VIC) | J. Thompson | 525m | 3,8,2 | 5-1/2L | 29.70sec | Jay Is Jay | MEA |
| 2024 | Excavation (VIC) | J. Thompson | 525m | 2,5,1 | 8L | 29.52sec* | Blue Kermaro | MEA |
Topgun Timeline
1993 First Topgun run. Victorian champions Worth Backing and Golden Currency defy wet and cold conditions to finish in a dead heat. Revealing finished a further four inches away in third. Worth Backing and Golden Currency split the $40,000 winner’s purse.
1994 Topgun held at Olympic Park. Winner’s purse increased to $50,000.
1995 Rapid Hiker sets new track record on old Sandown Park track.
1996 First place prizemoney increased to $70,000.
1997 Greyhounds from Ireland, the UK and United States compete against Australia’s best.
1998 Race elevated to Group 2 status.
1999 Race elevated to Group 1 status.
2000 Prizemoney increased to $100,000 to the winner.
2003 Bombastic Shiraz completes Triple Crown – claiming the Shootout, Melbourne Cup and Topgun.
2004 Whisky Assassin, drawn favourably in box 8, sets new Sandown Park track record – 29.40 seconds.
2005 Prizemoney increased to $125,000 to the winner.
2008 Race finds a permanent home at the Meadows after both Metro clubs agree to a new feature race structure. Previously the Topgun had alternated between the MGRA and Sandown.
2009 Superstar winner El Galo is disqualified after returning a positive swab and the race is awarded to Regal Thyme the first reserve, he gained a start in box one following the scratching of the injured Queenslander Knocka Norris.
2009 Victorian and Australian Greyhound of the year Cindeen Shelby rounded out her outstanding year with an all the way win defeating a classy field in 2009 Topgun.
2010 Another Victorian and Australian Greyhound of the Year El Grand Senor proved what a great champion he was with an outstanding Top Gun win, he led all the way in 29.83.
2011 Legendary Victorian Hall of Fame trainer Graeme Bate won one of the few events he hadn’t before secured. His extraordinary year continued when Allen Harper took out the Top Gun. He proved too good after finding the early lead. The Wheeler – Bate combination not only supplied the winner but runner-up as well with Radley Bale. It was a memorable night for the unstoppable team.
2012 Rank outsider David Bale ($31.20) caused one of the biggest boilovers in Group 1 history, running down kennelmate Desalle Bale in the shadows of the post to win the Sky Racing TOPGUN in 29.92.
2013 West Australian star Dyna Nalin ($9.00) gave the Wheeler family a historic third consecutive Topgun victory with a brilliant come-from-behind 29.89 win in the Group 1 classic.
2014 Australian Cup winner Buckle Up Wes ($6.30) staked his claim as Tasmania’s greatest ever Greyhound after winning the Group 1 Topgun. He also became the first greyhound to win the Australian Cup – Topgun double.
2015 Superstar Fernando Bale’s scorching all-the-way winning time of 29.57 a race record at the Meadows was enough to win the $150,000 first prize and stretch his unbeaten run in Group 1 finals to eight, a record that was unprecedented and will likely stand forever, particularly on the sprint circuit.
2016 Dundee Osprey won the 2016 Group 1 Sky Racing Topgun (525m) at The Meadows, the biggest win of his outstanding career.
The $215,000 race went to script for the powerful greyhound, as he got a dream run into the first corner and settled in third position behind pacy duo Aston Bolero and Pantera Nera.
From there Dundee Osprey (Fabregas – Dundee Rose) was always going to be hard to beat, and he proved too strong winning by three lengths over Aston Bolero, with Pantera Nera third in 29.99sec.
2017 Victorian star Up Hill Jill claimed a thoroughly deserved and overdue Group 1 breakthrough on one of Australian greyhound racing’s greatest stages, with a brilliant all-the-way victory in the Group 1 Sky Racing Topgun at The Meadows in 2017.
After winning the Group 2 Sandown Laurels in December 2016, the ultra-consistent speedster had been a regular in feature events throughout 2017, but frustratingly for trainer Dave Geall and owner/breeder wife Rose a second Group title has proven elusive. However, on Top Gun night she finally did it in style leading all the way at $13 recording 29.89.
2018 Prodigious talent Poke The Bear in a sensational display, trounced the best sprinters in the land to claim the Topgun’s $150,000 winner’s purse, emulating his superstar sire Fernando Bale, which won the invitational feature in 2015. Poke The Bear was positioned awkwardly early but drove through into third and after railing past the gallant Up Hill Jill in the back straight he dashed clear, trouncing Hasten Slowly by an ever-widening 5.96 lengths in 29.74sec.
2019 It was a shock result in the 2019 Group 1 Topgun with Get It Gizmo winning the $150,000 to-the-winner invitation for trainer Harry Manolitsis at double figure odds. In a race of high action, Get It Gizmo from box two whizzed up on the rails and sailed to a handy lead, with the people’s dog Feral Franky and Whiskey Riot hot in pursuit. But in the drive to the line Get It Gizmo proved far too strong, landing the $150,000 to-the-winner prize in 30.08 – the slowish time indicative of the way the race was run. Feral Franky lost no admirers finishing 2 ¾ lengths second, while it was another 1 ¼ lengths to Whiskey Riot in third.
2020 Victorian star Shima Shine claimed an overdue Group 1 breakthrough on one of Australian greyhound racing’s greatest stages with a memorable all-the-way victory in the TAB Topgun (525m) at The Meadows. Contesting the invitation-only Topgun for the second time, having run sixth to Get It Gizmo in 2019, it was an anomaly that Shima Shine didn’t yet have a Group success on his resume. Trained by Andrea Dailly, the son of Barcia Bale is raced by long-time breeding partners David Gleeson and Bob Cummings, who’ve enjoyed feature race success with Shima Shine’s mother Shima Song, a two-time Group 2 winner of the Geelong Cup and McKenna Memorial, and the likes of Shimaguni and Shima Bar. Shima Shine and Simon Told Helen then broke clear of the chasing pack as Shima Shine kept going strongly to deny the gallant Simon Told Helen, scoring by 2.5 lengths in a scorching 29.67s, equalling his Meadows personal best.
2021 The fastest greyhound in Australia became the best at The Meadows on Saturday night when Victorian superstar Aston Rupee was a brilliant winner of the Group 1 TAB Topgun (525m). Trained by Glenn Rounds at Devon Meadows, Aston Rupee started $2.20 favourite from Box 2 in the invitational sprint and railed underneath leader Tiggerlong Tonk ($15.40) in the home straight to claim his first G1 victory. “I saw the six (Tiggerlong Tonk) was in front and I was thinking balance up and do your stuff. He was fantastic,” Rounds told Jason Adams on Sky Racing post-race. Aston Rupee, a son of KC And All and 2017 Melbourne Cup finalist Aston Miley, bred and raced by prolific South Australian owner/breeder Ray Borda, had earned the tag as the quickest greyhound on the planet with a series of breathtaking displays.
2022 Photo Man completed an incredible Topgun double for reserves with an upset all-the-way victory in the $233,250 Group 1 Sportsbet Topgun (525m) at The Meadows on Saturday night. Trained by cousins Gavin Clifton and David McKenzie at Tynong North in Gippsland, Photo Man was selected as first reserve for the Topgun and was elevated into the field on Wednesday following the scratchings of interstaters Goods Odds Cash and Orchestrate. Gaining a start from Box 8, Photo Man was a $20.20 outsider in the invitational sprint, with superstar Wow She’s Fast $2.50 favourite, despite an awkward Box 5 draw. “I don’t know what to say. From not being in the race, to being in the race, to drawing the car park.” Having his first start since running third in the G1 Adelaide Cup on October 7, Photo Man showed great speed to cross the hand-picked field from the outside alley and he scooted clear in the back straight, as headline act Wow She’s Fast was shuffled back to the rear of the field. After opening up a huge mid-race lead, Photo Man defeated Million Dollar Chase hero McInerney ($13.50) by two lengths in 29.91sec, with Western Australian Vice Grip ($19.60) running third.
2023 TRANSPONDER has launched into The Phoenix calculations with a mesmerising victory in the Group 1 Topgun (525m) at The Meadows on Saturday night. The Adelaide Cup hero was meant to be the second stringer of Jason Thompson’s Topgun duo which also boasted race favourite Alpha Zulu. But someone forgot to tell the star son of Deliver which began with gusto to never really give anything else a look-in, racing away to annex the $150,000 first prize in devastating fashion. For Jason and Seona Thompson, Transponder’s heroics handed the champion trainers a fourth Topgun title, previously annexing the invitation event with No Intent (2001), Whiskey Assassin (2004) and Poke The Bear (2018). “When he gets clear running he’s an awesome sight and we saw tonight what he can do out in front,” handler Luke Thompson said post race.”Everyone thought he was our second stringer but the more we looked at the race we warmed to his chances. It was a Topgun without a lot of speed and when he put himself where he did early he was always going to be hard to beat.” Transponder carved out 29.74 to annex the Topgun defeating Million Dollar Chase hero Jay Is Jay by 5 1/2 lengths while Alpha Zulu finished third another 1 1/4 lengths away.
2024 Excavation produced a devastating early split to leave his rivals – and kennelmates – behind him in a stunning group 1 Sportsbet Topgun victory. The result is sure to shake up the market for the Phoenix, with slot holders now likely to fight for the Jason Thompson-trained sprinter. Thompson has already confirmed Explicit will represent Awesome Lodge in the world’s richest race on December 21, over the same track and distance as Saturday night’s Topgun. But Thompson will be reluctant to give away Excavation this far out, given there’s still six weeks to go for Explicit to arrive at the Phoenix in one piece. The margin was 7.5 lengths, as Excavation took advantage of box two in a first split time of 5.08. Kennelmates Flying Zulu and Explicit followed him in, but he left them for dead, as Blue Kermaro was the closer late to grab second from NSW raider Zipping Megatron.
Honour Roll Top Gun Stayers
TOP GUN STAYERS
Previous Winners of the Top Gun stayers. Group 2 2015 – 2017. Group 1 2018 onwards.
| Date | Winner | State | Trainer | Dist | Boxes | Margin | Time | Runner-up |
| 2015 | Sweet It Is | VIC | B. Finn | 725m | 3,4,2 | 0.70L | 42.55sec | Ada Mary |
| 2016 | Burn One Down | VIC | J. Thompson | 725m | 3,5,4 | 4.89L | 42.28sec | Ring The Bell |
| 2017 | Bogie Bekim | SA | B. Rawlings | 725m | 4,5,3 | 1.00L | 42.62sec | Fanta Bale |
| 2018 | Champagne Sally | QLD | R. Burman | 725m | 4,5,8 | 2.33L | 42.36sec | Poco Dorado |
| 2019 | Blue Moon Rising | NSW | J. Finn | 725m | 7,9,6 | 0.21L | 42.74sec | Just Terms |
| 2020 | Tornado Tears | VIC | R. Britton | 725m | 6,4,1 | 2.44L | 42.59sec | Here’s Tears |
| 2021 | Gypsy Wyong | VIC | A. Dailly | 725m | 2,3,7 | 1.49L | 42.75sec | Zipping Niseko |
| 2022 | Moraine Suzie | VIC | B. Pursell | 730m | 9,4,6 | 3L | 42.43sec | Mepunga Ruby |
| 2023 | Ritza Piper | NSW | J. Scerri | 730m | 7,8,3 | 2-1/4L | 42.66sec | Moraine Suzie |
| 2024 | Canya All Class | VIC | J. Hopkins | 730m | 4,1,6 | 3/4L | 42.72sec | Drill Sergeant |