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Waldron returns to Cambridge
Joshua Smith, LOVERACING.NZ News Desk • July 27th, 2026 4:21 pm
Joe Waldron pictured with his partner Sarah Fannin and Secret Beau following his win at Riccarton last year | Photo: Race Images South
It’s a return home of sorts for trainer Joe Waldron, who has moved north to establish a stable in Cambridge.
The former Wingatui-based horseman began his racing career working for Cambridge trainers Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman, and in a full-circle moment he will train at the same complex more than a decade later.
After several years working for Murray and Forsman, Waldron set up his own stable at Te Awamutu before moving across the Tasman to train in Victoria, and after more than five years in Australia he returned to New Zealand last year to set up a base in his home region of Otago.
“It was great being close to the extended family, it was something I haven’t been able to do for a very long time, so a good 12 months with them was fantastic,” Waldron said.
Waldron enjoyed plenty of success training out of Wingatui this season, winning six races, including his first at stakes level when Cluedo Lane took out the Gr.3 White Robe Lodge WFA (1600m) at the Dunedin track in February.
“Cluedo Lane’s stakes win was definitely the highlight, and Brave Spirit was a great horse to us as well,” Waldron said. “We only had him for the five runs, but he won two and ran another couple of placings and was a bit unlucky (when fourth) in the Hazlett (Listed, 1400m).”
While Waldron enjoyed his time in Wingatui, he always desired to return to Waikato, and the opportunity recently arose to lease some stables opposite Cambridge Racecourse.
“It (moving to Cambridge) was something that we were looking to do at some point, it has just come about a little bit quicker than we thought,” he said. “But it is really hard to find stabling around Cambridge and we got offered the opportunity to lease a property that is opposite the track, and when that came up we jumped at the chance.
“It is great to be back, I spent a couple of years here with Murray and Andrew’s stable and I learned a lot in terms of how to use the training tracks, and I have been able to slot back into a familiar working routine.
“A lot of big owners and studs like to have their horses in work in these sorts of places, so it is great to be here and hopefully get opportunities like that going forward.”
Waldron arrived in Cambridge a fortnight ago and is settling into his new barn.
“We have got 17 boxes, so we will float between 15 and 20 in work,” he said. “We have got 15 at the moment, which is enough to keep us busy.”
Most of his southern runners have moved north with him, with the exception of Brave Spirit, and Cluedo Lane will continue to be his leading light heading into the new season.
“Brave Spirit unfortunately didn’t come up with us, but Cluedo Lane has and we are looking forward to him kicking off,” Waldron said.
“Cluedo Lane has come back super, he is a little bit behind some of the horses up here leading into that early part of the spring, just with the weather down at Wingatui it was a bit hard to do too much with them over the last little while.
“He will probably kick-off in a 1400m open handicap at Ruakaka on the 15th of August and we will let him dictate where he heads after that. We will nominate him for some of those better races and assess where to go after he runs fresh-up.
“There are a heap of options for him up this way, there are obviously those Group One races, but if we want to take a slightly easier path, there are a couple of weight-for-age miles and Listed miles around the fringes, and I am sure in something like that he will be competitive.”
Waldron said he has also picked up a couple of stable newcomers on his way north.
“We have picked up a couple of other South Island horses, which has been nice,” he said. “We have got a horse called Pogacar, he is only lightly raced, and it looks like he could be capable of going through the grades.
“We have been lucky to get a few rising three-year-olds, so hopefully one of them puts their hand up over that spring and summer period.”
