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Wellington Cup looms for One Bold Cat

Robbie Patterson is fizzing to get to the Gr.3 NZ Campus Of Innovation & Sport Wellington Cup (3200m) with his Group One winner One Bold Cat (The Bold One) later this month.The Taranaki horseman was confident heading towards the two-mile feature prior to Saturday, but One Bold Cat’s victory in the Listed Vernon & Vazey Truck Parts LTD (2200m) at Trentham has further added to that sentiment.The seven-year-old gelding was dropping back from elite-level company, having last raced whe...

Cameron scores fourth Phar Lap Trophy

Rider Matt Cameron’s love affair with one of the feature mile races at Trentham each year came to the fore once again when he guided consistent performer Khanshe (Mongolian Khan) to a stunning victory in the Gr.3 Ron Stanley Memorial Phar Lap Trophy (1600m) on Saturday.Punters weren’t enamoured with his chances aboard the Fraser Auret-trained Khanshe, allowing the daughter of Mongolian Khan to start at $18 in the Fixed Odds market which was dominated by up and comers Ma Te Wa ($2.90) an...

La Dorada back to her best in Levin Classic

All eyes and money were on Argo prior to the Gr.2 Levin Track Supporters Levin Classic (1400m), with the world’s leading jockey James McDonald aboard the gelding, but it was La Dorada (Super Seth) who scored top honours when returning to her brilliant best in the Trentham feature on Saturday.The Mark Walker and Sam Bergerson-trained filly was victorious over the same track and distance when taking out last season’s Gr.1 Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) on her way to being crowned Cha...

First Five kicks major goal in Trentham feature

Te Rapa visitor First Five (Almanzor) delivered on his enormous potential when he gave trainer David Greene his first Group One success when taking out the Gr.1 TAB Telegraph (1200m) at Trentham.Carrying his favourite number 10 saddlecloth, the strapping son of Almanzor took full advantage of that good omen as he dominated the closing stages of the time-honoured sprint feature to head off the challenge of last year’s third placegetter Navigator and the winner of the 2025 contest, Grail Se...

Jones gets her Kiwi Group victory

It may not have been on the horse she crossed the Tasman for, but premiership-winning Queensland hoop Angela Jones got her Group victory at Ellerslie on New Year’s Day.The 24-year-old jockey had accepted the invitation of Wexford Stables to partner Smart Love in the Gr.2 Rich Hill Mile (1600m), and while she was unplaced on the mare, she was victorious for the stable on the undercard aboard Up The Anti in the Horizon By SkyCity 1600.When fellow Matamata trainers Peter and Shaun McKay heard Jon...

Ohope Wins bolts home in Sir Patrick Hogan Stakes

Promising staying filly Ohope Wins (Ocean Park) chose the best possible moment to break her maiden status when she powered home to take out the Gr.2 Sir Patrick Hogan Stakes (2000m) at Ellerslie.The Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott-prepared daughter of Waikato Stud stallion Ocean Park had caught the eye when powering home late to finish second over 1600m at Te Rapa a fortnight ago and was one of the most discussed candidates in the lead-up to the traditional New Year’s Day age-group fe...

White Robe Lodge hoping Ancient Spirit can continue stakes momentum

Last Friday was a bittersweet day for White Robe Lodge.The Otago stud farm lost their Group One-producing stallion Ghibellines, but their fortunes quickly took a turn for the better when their young sire Ancient Spirit recorded his first stakes win when his daughter Bobby Mcgee took out the Listed NZB Airfreight Stakes (1400m) down the road at Wingatui.“It was a good result, we thought that filly was above average and she won well,” White Robe Lodge Stud Manager Wayne Stewart said.While...

La Crique retired

La Crique (Vadamos), arguably the most consistent horse in Australasian racing, has been retired.The dual Group One winner has been hampered with foot issues over the last couple of years, with a decision made on Monday morning to bring the curtain down on her racing career following her fourth placed run in the Gr.1 Zabeel Classic (2000m) at Ellerslie on Boxing Day.“She is still putting in some terrific races and even on Boxing Day she ran a terrific race,” said Katrina Alexander, who train...

Well Written well ridden in Auckland Guineas triumph

Nerves are a rare feeling for Stephen Marsh on raceday, but he was certainly feeling them at Ellerslie on Boxing Day.The Cambridge horseman was lining up his unbeaten filly Well Written (Written Tycoon) in the Gr.2 Jimmy Schick Shaw’s Auckland Guineas (1400m), and he knew the well-supported filly would be vulnerable fresh-up.The daughter of Written Tycoon has made waves since winning on debut at Ellerslie in September, going on to win the Gr.2 Soliloquy Stakes (1400m) in eye-catching fash...

Tellum upsets in Eight Carat Classic

A brilliant front-running ride from Joe Doyle saw gritty filly Tellum (Ocean Park) upset the applecart as she downed the favourites in the Gr.2 Hallmark Stud Eight Carat Classic (1600m) at Ellerslie on Boxing Day.The Debbie Sweeney-prepared three-year-old had been thereabouts in her recent racing and with no other runners prepared to set up the pace, it was Doyle and the daughter of Ocean Park who seized the initiative and dictated proceedings.It was obvious that the filly was travelling we...

Bobby Mcgee on song at Wingatui

Promising filly Bobby Mcgee (Ancient Spirit) showed she will be a force to be reckoned with against her age-group rivals over the next few months when she bounded home to take out her first victory at stakes level in the Listed NZB Airfreight Stakes (1400m) at Wingatui.The Terry Kennedy-prepared daughter of White Robe Lodge stallion Ancient Spirit had broken her maiden status on her home track two starts ago and followed that up with a tidy run for fifth against the three-year-olds at Inver...

Sagunto wins third Manawatu Cup

Matamata visitor Sagunto (O'Reilly) etched his name into the folklore of the Gr.3 Humphries Construction Manawatu Cup (2300m) when he claimed his third victory in the race with a brilliant front-running performance at Trentham.Successful in the Group Three contest in 2022 and again in 2023, the Peter and Shaun McKay-trained 10-year-old had been battling to recapture his best form in his current campaign, although he had given plenty of cheek from in front before fading to midfield in the Gr...

Lux Libertas up to the Manawatu Challenge

Lux Libertas (Almanzor) has come close in several stakes races, but she was able to shed her bridesmaid tag at Trentham on Saturday when taking out the Gr.2 Bramco Granite & Marble Manawatu Challenge Stakes (1400m).The five-year-old mare was first-up since her runner-up performance in the Listed Tauranga Classic (1400m) in June, and she was kept safe by punters as a $6.60 third elect.She jumped away well under leading Central Districts hoop Bruno Queiroz, who gave her a beautiful trip i...

War Princess wins Eulogy battle

Well performed three-year-old filly War Princess (U S Navy Flag) proved a class above her age group rivals as she led from barrier rise to take out the Gr.3 Lawnmaster Eulogy Stakes (1600m) at Trentham to claim her first success at stakes level.The Peter and Trent Didham-prepared daughter of U S Navy Flag went into the Group Three feature off the back of a luckless runner-up performance in the Listed O’Learys Fillies Stakes (1340m) at Wanganui last month where she flew home to finish behi...

Gerald Shand

This week on Dunstan Horsefeeds’ Meet the Breeder, we spoke with Gerald Shand, the proud breeder of First Five, who claimed the Gr.3 J Swap Sprint at Te Rapa last weekend. The victory adds to a strong run of results for Shand, further highlighting his current success as a proud New Zealand breeder.Tell us the story of First FiveFirst Five is a son of Payette, a Volksraad mare that I bred and raced. She won six races and ran fourth in the Listed Newmarket Handicap at Ellerslie.I purchased ...

The remarkable rise of Zambardo

Exciting four-year-old Zambardo (Belardo) was one of the stories of the spring, progressing from relative obscurity to Group One company in a matter of months.Originally prepared in Ashburton in New Zealand’s South Island, the son of Belardo came from modest beginnings.Sold as a weanling for just $3100 via gavelhouse.com to trainer Emma Wyatt, Zambardo, who raced as Our Martian in New Zealand, was a trial winner and twice placed at Ashburton before he was identified by astute bloodstock a...

Experience gives Hawthorne winning hand

Thoroughbreds dominated Dean Hawthorne’s life from an early age and his subsequent multi-faceted involvement had him expertly placed to make his mark as a respected bloodstock agent.From working with stallions, pre-training and breaking-in to sales preparations, he had put together a deep and varied CV before launching Dean Hawthorne Bloodstock.His background also includes an international three-day eventing career that earned him New Zealand representation.Horses were in Hawthorne’s blood a...

Purton rates Ka Ying Rising in a league of his own

New Zealand-breds filled the first four placings in the HK$28 million Gr.1 Hong Kong Sprint, with superstar Ka Ying Rising (Shamexpress) extending his winning streak to 16 in a commanding display.The gelding secured his sixth Group One victory to match the mighty Golden Sixty’s feat of posting 16 straight wins to be now only one short of Hong Kong’s record of 17, held by Silent Witness, and enhanced his own record to 17 wins and two seconds from 19 starts with prize money of HK$122.5 mi...

Karaka Millions beckons Birchley’s Dream Roca

Trainer Liam Birchley has long earmarked the Listed TAB Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m) for highly promising juvenile Dream Roca, and the daughter of El Roca took another step in the direction of the Ellerslie feature with a dominant win at Eagle Farm on Saturday.Dream Roca finished runner-up on debut over 1000m in October and showed the benefit of raceday experience as she closed over the top of favourite Star Of Jamaica to score over the same course and distance by two lengths on Saturday.“The f...

Patience key to Graces’ success

Patience, a diminishing commodity in the modern environment, remains a key marker for Raumati couple Christopher and Susanna Grace, two of New Zealand racing’s longest serving and most successful participants.No better example is the latest star of the Graces’ home-bred racing string, the Andrew Forsman-trained Hinekaha (Savabeel), who completed a hat-trick with her all-the-way win in Saturday’s Gr.2 Cal Isuzu Stakes (1600m) at Te Rapa.Midway through last season, the daughter of Savabeel w...

Dashing Dixie Karaka Millions bound

Wexford Stables’ exciting juvenile filly Dashing Dixie (Alabama Express) is TAB Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m) bound following her debut victory at Te Rapa on Saturday.The daughter of Alabama Express had placed in her two trials over 800m leading into her first raceday appearance, and trainers Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott were hopeful of a bold showing.In a compact field of four, Dashing Dixie jumped away well and maintained her advantage on the rail to take up the pace making role. S...

First Five storms to home track victory

Underrated sprinter First Five (Almanzor) produced a barnstorming finish to capture his first stakes victory when he took out the Gr.3 J Swap Sprint (1400m) at Te RapaCarrying the familiar colours of well-known thoroughbred identity Gerald Shand, the David Greene-prepared five-year-old has been a model of consistency in his career so far although his task on Saturday looked a daunting one with a quality line-up carded for the Group Three feature.Allowed to start at odds of better than $26 i...

Surprise tactics see Hinekaha dominate from the front at Te Rapa

A change of tactics that saw promising mare Hinekaha (Savabeel) go straight to the front from barrier rise paved the way for her biggest success when she scored a game win in the Gr.2 Cal Isuzu Stakes (1600m) at Te Rapa.The lightly-raced four-year-old daughter of Savabeel had never lead in any of her previous eight starts, however trainer Andrew Forsman was keen to see rider Craig Grylls take the initiative from the start in the seven-horse line-up.“I spoke to Craig and we thought the log...

Sharp ‘N’ Smart takes Waikato Cup in thrilling finish

Former Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) winner Sharp ‘N’ Smart (Redwood) returned to the scene of that 2023 triumph to take out the Gr.3 SKYCITY Hamilton Waikato Cup (2400m) in a thrilling three-way finish to the Te Rapa staying feature.A triple Group One winner as a three-year-old, the Team Rogerson-prepared son of Redwood hadn’t been seen in the winners’ enclosure since his Derby triumph as the now six-year-old took on the best Australasia had to offer on both sides of the Tasman wh...

Iconic stallion makes his mark on agent

Sir Tristram could be a mean and unpredictable character, but a forgiving John White will always be in debt to the superstar stallion.The multiple champion sire possessed a notoriously nasty streak and always required vigilance and careful handling.“I went to Cambridge Stud when it first opened and I was Sir Tristram’s groom for five of the six years I was there and he was a bastard, but he made me a horseman,” White said.“I was very happy go lucky, but you had to be on your toes. He was...