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Top weekend for Curraghmore graduates

Curraghmore celebrated widespread success at the weekend with winners in three countries and highlighted by the domestic stakes of rising star Snazzytavi.Farm principal Gordon Cunningham bred and sold the gifted daughter of the late Tavistock who ended her campaign with an effortless victory in the Gr.3 Easter Handicap (1600m) at Ellerslie.Trained by Graham Richardson and Rogan Norvall for Cambridge Stud, Snazzytavi has gone for a break with five wins and four placings, including a third in the ...

2024/25 racing calendar released

Key strategic changes across the two equine codes headline the 2024-25 New Zealand racing calendar released today.Following on from a strategic partnership between TAB NZ and Entain Australia and New Zealand that commenced in June last year, the two organisations and three racing codes in New Zealand have taken the opportunity to revamp the calendar.Next season’s calendar features include:·         An increase of 27 Sunday meetings for thoroughbred raci...

Training great Dave O’Sullivan passes away

The racing industry is mourning the death of training great Dave O’Sullivan, 90, following his passing on Friday.David John O’Sullivan, OBE and New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame member, first made his mark as a jockey before increasing weight forced his hand to take up training in 1961.From humble beginnings he established Wexford Stables as a force throughout New Zealand, in Australia and as far afield as Japan where he and his sons – training partner Paul and stable jockey Lance – were t...

Another Derby beckons Bold Soul

Progressive staying three-year-old Bold Soul tuned up for next week’s Gr.1 South Australian Derby (2500m) with a strong win in the Gr.3 Chairman's Stakes (2000m) at Morphettville for trainer Patrick Payne and jockey Jake Noonan.The son of Embellish has followed a similar path to the Payne-trained Dunkel, who won last year’s South Australian Derby after spring-boarding off a successful campaign in Tasmania.Like Dunkel, Bold Soul won both the Listed Launceston Guineas (2100m) and Listed Tasman...

Superb Snazzytavi delivers another Easter for Richardson and Norvall

Two years after taking out the Gr.3 Manco Easter Handicap (1600m) with Carolina Reaper, Matamata trainers Graham Richardson and Rogan Norvall have repeated and surpassed that result with a one-three finish headed by the rising star Snazzytavi.The time-honoured autumn showpiece was run for the 150th time on Saturday, a week later than expected and at a new home of Te Rapa due to the abandonment of the Ellerslie meeting last weekend. But despite the unusual circumstances, Snazzytavi produced a per...

Apostrophe emphatic in potential Travis Stakes swansong

If Apostrophe has run her final race, the talented mare signed off on a successful career in style with a powerful finish to capture the Gr.2 Travis Stakes (2000m) at Te Rapa on Saturday.Apostrophe was purchased by her trainers Roger James and Robert Wellwood for $60,000 at Karaka in 2019 and debuted in the middle of her three-year-old season and has aged like fine wine with each racing season bringing new heights for the now six-year-old mare.This term has been the best yet with her familiar ba...

Wexford Stables produce upset in Cambridge Breeders’ Stakes

Just twenty-four hours after the passing of Wexford Stables figurehead Dave “DJ” O’Sullivan, the New Zealand training icon would have been looking down on Te Rapa with a beaming smile as promising filly I’munstoppable led from go to whoa to capture the Gr.3 Inglis Sales Cambridge Breeders’ Stakes (1200m) for the Matamata operation.Prepared by O’Sullivan’s fellow New Zealand Hall of Fame member and son Lance alongside Andrew Scott, the three-year-old daughter of Charm Spirit led her...

Climbing Star upsets in Robert Sangster Stakes

Jockey Lachlan Neindorf celebrated a Group One milestone as he guided Zoustar mare Climbing High to the pair’s first Group One victory in the Robert Sangster Stakes (1200m) at Morphettville.After stepping slowly, Climbing Star, who carries the NZ suffix, settled near last in a strongly run race. The Phillip Stokes-trained four-year-old spotted the leaders in excess of ten lengths and was down on the inner of the track which jockeys had avoided for most of the day.Neindorf didn’t panic and ga...

Waikato Girl on Queensland Oaks path

Impeccably bred Savabeel filly Waikato Girl has added valuable black-type to her CV with a brave victory in the Listed Princess Stakes (1600m) at Eagle Farm on Saturday for trainer Michael Freedman.Bred and part-owned by Sir Peter Vela, Waikato Girl is out of Scintilulla, a Group Three winning and multiple Group One placed daughter of champion sire Galileo.Sporting the colours of Gandharvi Racing, Waikato Girl broke maiden ranks when successful at Rosehill in November.She found her way to Queens...

Meet The Breeder - Aimee Peterken

In this week’s Dunstan HorseFeeds Meet The Breeder we chat to Aimee Peterken,  who bred her first stakes winner when Sassy Merlot (Burgundy x Saveadance {Savabeel}) took out the Listed Easter Stakes (1400m) at Riccarton last Saturday. Tell us the story of Sassy Merlot?In 2017 I was planning to discontinue breeding when after 20 + years I had a tragic season with losing my Sporthorse Stallion, Foundation Mare and a foal all within 3 months… I had never lost a horse so this series of...

Mr Mojo Risin’ too slick in Anzac Mile

Cambridge raider Mr Mojo Risin’ capitalised on a dream rail run to capture his first stakes victory when he claimed the Listed TAB Anzac Mile (1600m) at Otaki.Carrying the distinctive green colours of his breeders and owners, the Carter family under their Jomara Bloodstock banner, the four-year-old son of Deep Field had suggested he was ready to take the step up in class when powering home to win over 1400m in rating 75 company at the venue earlier in the month.Senior rider Joe Doyle took over...

Super Easy Western Australia bound

Hallmark Stud have announced that their resident stallion Super Easy will continue his breeding career across the Tasman following his recent purchase by Lewthwaite Thoroughbreds.A $140,000 New Zealand Bloodstock Yearling Sale purchase, the son of Darci Brahma was initially trained in New Zealand by John Sargent, for whom he won on debut before finishing runner-up in the Gr.3 Eclipse Stakes (1200m) and fourth in the Karaka Million 2Y0 (1200m).He continued his racing career in Singapore where he ...

Almanzor fillies quinella VRC St Leger

Cambridge Stud stallion Almanzor played a starring role at Flemington on Anzac Day, siring the quinella in the A$200,000 Listed VRC St Leger (2800m) with his three-year-old daughters Ahuriri and Alma Rise.Ahuriri became only the ninth filly to win the VRC St Leger since 1930, and the first since fellow Kiwi-bred filly Exceptionally back in 2010.Both Ahuriri and Alma Rise were rated among the favourites for Thursday’s staying test, with Alma Rise just shading her rival for favouritism at $3.30 ...

Little Avondale Stallions 2024

Little Avondale would like to advise breeders that resident stallion Per Incanto remains at $50,000 plus GST for the 2024 season. The son of Street Cry has had another successful season highlighted by Belclare’s second consecutive win in New Zealand’s premier fillies and mare race, the Group 1 NZ Thoroughbred Breeders Stakes. In the sale ring his 29 Karaka Book 1 yearlings averaged $170,000 and at Sydney Easter he was leading NZ based sire with the Dreamlife colt selling for $650,000 and ave...

Cambridge Stud announces service fees

Off the back of announcing a world class addition to the 2024 stallion line-up, Cambridge Stud has announced service fees for its full roster.The premier Waikato nursery has partnered with Juddmonte Farms to shuttle multiple Group One winner Chaldean who will stand his first Southern Hemisphere season later this year at $35,000 + GST and will be limited to 120 mares.Group One winner and top-flight producer Almanzor has enjoyed another lucrative season and his 2024 service fee has been set at $30...

Moonlight Magic winning the Gr.3 Championship Stakes (2100m) at Ellerslie last Saturday.

Progressive filly Moonlight Magic took a significant last-start step toward the goal of a third Group One winner for The Sunlight Trust with her breakthrough success at stakes level.The boutique Waikato operation of Murray and Marg Hardy and Paddy Preston bred and races the daughter of Almanzor, who deservedly triumphed in the Gr.3 Championship Stakes (2100m) last Saturday at Ellerslie off the back of a string of strong black-type performances.Trained by Andrew Forsman, she had been a luckless f...

Patience pays off with foundation mare

November Rain was a standout filly for Matthew Goodson and Dianna Perron, but she has proven to be a test of patience as a broodmare for the husband-and-wife duo, which was rewarded on Saturday through the deeds of her daughter No Rain Ever.The Bill Thurlow-trained filly recorded her first stakes win when taking out the Listed Warstep Stakes (2000m) at Riccarton, adding to her previous placing in the Listed Uncle Remus Stakes (1200m) at Ellerslie in February.“I am very happy,” Goodson said. ...

Lucrative weekend for Westbury’s Swiss Ace

Westbury Stud stalwart Swiss Ace continues to be a reliable source of winners and the Group One-winning sprinter was again to the fore at the weekend.His unbeaten son Domain Ace was an impressive juvenile stakes winner at Te Rapa on Saturday while Sabah Ace continued his march through the grades in Singapore with victory at Kranji on Sunday evening.Swiss Ace’s genuine three-year-old daughter Race Ace also collected her third black-type placing when the Fraser Auret-trained filly finished a gam...

Peterken breeds first stakes winner

Aimee Peterken has only been breeding thoroughbreds for a few years, but she is already starting to leave her mark.The Auckland-based marketing professional had previously been involved in competing and breeding sport horses, but a chance encounter at a social event led her to change tack and enter the thoroughbred world.“I used to be a show rider,” Peterken said. “It was an introduction to Micaela Murray (that got me involved with thoroughbreds), we were out at an event, and we shared mut...

Blackadder chasing Pearl bonus with Yoshime

John Blackadder will travel down to Phar Lap Raceway on Wednesday with the appeal of an Entain – NZB Insurance Pearl Series bonus for Yoshime.Yoshime has produced a pair of strong runner-up finishes to Rubicon Reigns and subsequent Rating 65 winner Contemplation Bay in early March and looks a strong chance of breaking maiden status in the fillies and mares event.“I gave her a couple of weeks off after her last race to give her a freshen-up, she had a pretty hard run and she’s progressed ve...

Disturbia all the way at Mornington

A week after his remarkable front-running heroics on Pride Of Jenni in the Gr.1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m), in-form jockey Declan Bates pulled off another wire-to-wire performance with New Zealand-bred mare Disturbia in Saturday’s Evergreen Turf Handicap (1600m) at Mornington.A second placegetter in all of her last three appearances, the four-year-old daughter of Turn Me Loose dominated Saturday’s A$80,000 race from the moment the gates opened. Bates sent her forward from the outside gat...

Southern raid produces black-type gold for Sassy Merlot

An autumn trip to Canterbury has turned out to be career-defining for Matamata mare Sassy Merlot, who added a valuable black-type win to her record in Saturday’s Listed Daphne Bannan Memorial Great Easter Stakes (1400m) at Riccarton.A placegetter in the Gr.2 Wellington Guineas (1400m), Gr.3 Desert Gold Stakes (1600m) and Gr.3 Rotorua Stakes (1400m) as a three-year-old, Sassy Merlot had struggled to find her best form through her four and five-year-old seasons.An encouraging third at Hastings o...

Magical finish secures Championship Stakes

Underrated three-year-old filly Moonlight Magic employed a barnstorming finish from last to secure a valuable stakes victory when she captured the Gr.3 Trelawney Stud Championship Stakes (2100m) at Ellerslie in spectacular fashion.The Andrew Forsman-prepared daughter of Almanzor had been thereabouts in all of her recent racing without having much luck, but ensured her maiden victory would be a memorable one in a race that will significantly boost her value when she eventually heads to the broodm...

Ace juvenile dominates in Starway Stakes

Exciting juvenile Domain Ace maintained his perfect record with a dominant win in Saturday’s Listed TAB Starway Stakes (1200m) at Ellerslie.The son of Swiss Ace made a strong impression on debut earlier this month at Otaki, warranting co-trainer Graeme Rogerson to consider backing up in the Gr.1 Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) the following Saturday.Rogerson elected to bypass the Trentham showpiece in favour of targeting the Starway Stakes, where Domain Ace flew under the radar in bet...

Chaldean to shuttle to Cambridge Stud

From Cambridge Stud:We are delighted to announce that we have partnered with Juddmonte Farms in the UK to shuttle Frankel’s dual Gr.1 winning son Chaldean to Cambridge Stud.Chaldean emulated his sire, becoming only the ninth colt in the last 50 years to complete the Gr.1 Dewhurst-Guineas double and are the only father-son duo to complete the Dewhurst-Guineas double ever.In 2023 alone, Frankel sired 11 Group One winners, 27 Group winners and 42 stakes winners, more than any other stallion in th...