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Karaka Graduate Proves Too Hot For Rivals At The Valley

Trainer Cliff Brown describes himself as the world’s biggest pessimist, but he is hoping for a successful spring with former Singapore star The Inferno (Holy Roman Emperor). Brown says The Inferno is potentially the best horse he has trained and believes the sprinter could be a contender in Australia’s richest race, The Everest (1200m) at Randwick in October. The Inferno took out the Gr.2 McEwen Stakes (1000m) at The Valley on Saturday at his second start in Australia to provide Brown with ...

Bellacontte proves too strong in Wanganui feature

Foxton filly Bellacontte picked up a deserved success at stakes level when she produced an irresistible late run to take out the Listed O’Learys Fillies Stakes (1200m) at Wanganui on Saturday. The Chrissy Bambry-trained three-year-old daughter of Burgundy had been a model of consistency in four starts as a two-year-old, picking up a win and finishing her season with a strong showing for fourth in the Listed Castletown Stakes (1200m) at Otaki. Settled in midfield by rider Sarah McNab, Bellacont...

Soldier Boy marches to Guineas success

Underrated three-year-old Soldier Boy caused a minor upset when he took out the Listed HS Dyke Wanganui Guineas (1340m). The Gavin Sharrock-trained son of Proisir was having his fifth start and first since catching the eye when running home late in the piece in the Gr.1 Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) at Awapuni back in April. Handled patiently by rider Kate Hercock, Soldier Boy jumped nicely from barrier eight before being restrained to sit in behind a steady speed set up by Cambridge ...

Black type goals for Francesca

Lightly raced four-year-old Francesca made a winning start to her spring campaign at Te Rapa on Saturday, as she sets out on a preparation aimed at securing some valuable black-type for a future breeding career. The Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman-trained daughter of Iffraaj never looked in any danger of defeat as she sat outside pacemaker Shezathinka before asserting her superiority in the home straight to win by a neat length in the rating 74 1400m contest. Bred and raced by Greg McCarthy, wh...

Mascarpone gets the cream in Foxbridge Plate

Punters who thought Saturday’s Gr.2 Valachi Downs Foxbridge Plate (1200m) was a two-horse race between last year’s winner and heavily backed favourite Avantage and Taranaki visitor Tavi Mac were given a lesson in the vagaries of racing as the Team Rogerson-trained Mascarpone upset the applecart in the Te Rapa feature. The five-year-old son of Shooting To Win had always promised to win a good race and had been close-up in several feature sprints over the past two years, including a third-plac...

DUNSTAN BREEDER OF THE MONTH | David Paykel

NZTBA Auckland branch member David Paykel has been embedded in the thoroughbred racing and breeding industry as long as he can remember. Paykel is the son and nephew respectively of Fisher & Paykel whiteware manufacturing founders Maurice Paykel and Sir Woolf Fisher, who both celebrated great success with their bloodstock portfolios. Paykel Senior bred and owned several top-class horses in partnership with his good friend Bob Morris of Cambridge, while Sir Woolf and Lady Fisher (nee Joyce Paykel...

Third Stakes Winner for Time Test

Fresh off recording his first Group victory as a sire courtesy of Rocchigiani in the Gr.3 Renate und Albrecht Woeste Zukunftsrennen (1400m) on Wednesday, Little Avondale Stud shuttle stallion Time Test was celebrating his third individual stakes winner and second Group winner just 24 hours later. Two-year-old filly Romantic Time charged home to win the Gr.3 Dick Poole Fillies’ Stakes (1200m) at Salisbury on Thursday, giving trainer William Stone his biggest moment in racing. Jockey Hollie Doyl...

Auckland Neighbours Celebrate some Lockdown Cheer

COVID-19 lockdown makes for testing times at present, but the weekend news from Sydney for two Auckland near-neighbours has given them something to celebrate. Octogenarians Don Goodwin and David Paykel live within walking distance of each other in the North Shore suburb of Takapuna. In the past three years Goodwin has been having the time of his life as the breeder and co-owner of outstanding racemare Verry Elleegant, while over a much longer period Paykel has enjoyed numerous successes with ho...

Banquo joins Waikato Stud stallion roster

Stakes winner Banquo will join Waikato Stud’s stallion roster for the upcoming breeding season, becoming the first son of Champion sire Written Tycoon to stand at stud in New Zealand. Trained by Danny O’Brien, Banquo was victorious in the Listed Springtime Stakes (1400m) on the final day of the Melbourne Spring Carnival in 2019, and was placed in the Gr.2 Autumn Stakes (1400m) and Gr.2 Bobbie Lewis Handicap (1200m). “Banquo is an incredibly good-looking horse and he was very talented,” O...

Adelaide stakes win looks routine for Second Slip

Five-year-old Alamosa gelding Second Slip broke through for his maiden stakes victory when making a one-act affair of the Listed Leon Macdonald Stakes (1400m) at Morphettville. The Kiwi import has proved a revelation since joining the in-form Will Clarken stable, winning five of his seven starts from his new quarters. Previously prepared by Kevin Gray, Second Slip won two of his 12 starts in New Zealand before attracting the attention of Melbourne-based bloodstock agent Lenny Russo, who brokere...

Rupert Clarke awaits Probabeel

Classy Kiwi mare Probabeel remained unbeaten at Caulfield when claiming Saturday's Gr.3 W.W. Cockram Stakes (1200m) and will seek a second Group One success at the venue next month. The Jamie Richards-trained five-year-old ($1.95 favourite) found a good spot midfield under an ace Damian Lane ride, crossing from the outside barrier of 10. Probabeel was placed under pressure approaching the home turn and kept responding in the straight, over-running the outsider of the nine-horse field Chassis ($...

Breeder of the Year Awards up for Decision

Following the postponement of the Ebbett VW Hamilton National Breeding Awards until a later date the NZTBA is pleased to announce the finalists for the Sir Patrick and Justine Lady Hogan Breeder of the Year Award. The finalists for the supreme award are Gordon Cunningham, Suncroft Bloodstock and partners, Explosive Breeding Limited and partners, Nearco Stud and Waikato Stud. This year a new award, sponsored by Luigi Muollo, has been added to the list of awards honouring small breeders, for which...

Show Goes on for Grangewilliam Stud

While many New Zealanders are currently stuck in their bubbles contemplating what next to watch on Netflix, things haven’t changed as a result of COVID-19 Alert Level 4 lockdown for farmers, including Mark Corcoran of Grangewilliam Stud, just north of Wanganui. The South Taranaki horseman is enjoying the freedom of continuing to work on his property and ramping into foaling season. “I have just been moving a mob of mares and I am sitting on the quad bike out in the sun, it is a beautiful day...

Thoroughbred Breeding Industry Adapting to Get Through Lockdown

While the majority of New Zealanders hit the pause button on their lives under the current Level 4 COVID lockdown, the same can’t be said for those involved in the thoroughbred breeding industry. The onset of spring signals the most hectic period in the annual operations of nationwide stud farms and breeding enterprises as the busy foaling season commences, followed by stallions covering mares from September. For Mark Chitty, Managing Director of Haunui Farm in Karaka, the lockdown is just ano...

Mo’unga Returns in Group One Style

Four-year-old entire Mo’unga landed the Gr.1 Winx Stakes (1400m) at Randwick on Saturday, upstaging eight-time Group One winner Verry Elleegant in a Kiwi bred quinella, in what was a blanket finish to the first elite level contest of the season. Mo’unga had provided trainer Annabel Neasham with the first Group One win of her career when taking out the Rosehill Guineas (2000m) as an autumn three-year-old, and the son of Savabeel looks like he will be more than competitive now that he is racin...

Vale Tony Ryan

Industry identity Tony Ryan has passed away at the age of 83 after a long illness. Tony grew up in Lower Hutt and spent many a day at the Trentham racecourse where his love of thoroughbreds developed into a life-long passion. He purchased his first horse in the early 1970s after his father died and the estate managed to sell each of his horses bar one, which Tony and his first wife Mary Lynne purchased. That horse was Go For Broke, who would go on to be his most successful, with daughter Benedic...

South Island breeders looking forward to the spring

Canterbury based breeders Annabel Wigley and Olly Tuthill are anticipating an exciting spring. As well as looking forward to the arrival of foals by a host of exciting sires, they will be following talented South Island galloper Milford Sound (Ocean Park – In The Rain) as he tackles the Hawke’s Bay Triple Crown. The couple bred Milford Sound in partnership with Annabel’s parents John and Sally Wigley and trade collectively as Beaufort Downs. Trained at Riccarton by Andrew Carston, Milford...

NZTR's Single National System Update

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Mary Lynne Ryan Young Achiever Award

Waikato horsewoman Mary Lynne Ryan is remembered for her passion for thoroughbred breeding and racing and for her dedication to the development and education of young people wanting to develop their careers. Introduced in 2007, the award named in her honour recognises the dedication and passion of a talented young person (30yo and under) working in the thoroughbred industry. The list of past recipients features the likes of Brighthill Farm’s Benji King, Picket Fence owner/operator Tara Hughes,...

Underrated Zed making name the hard way

Zed may be one of New Zealand’s most solidly proven stallions, but there’s still plenty of room for broodmare owners that want their mares to visit him. Grangewilliam Stud’s son of Zabeel has had another very good season domestically, finishing in the top 10 of the sires’ list for the third successive year, while across the Tasman he finished 28th on the General Sires’ list.  Zed’s headline act for the last few seasons is his brilliant daughter Verry Elleegant, who has a strong ...

National Breeding Awards & Waikato Stallion Parade Postponed

After a hiatus in 2020 due to COVID-19, the Waikato Branch of the NZTBA were looking forward to a bumper weekend in the Waikato this week with the gavelhouse.com Waikato Stallion Parade book-ending the Ebbett VW National Breeding Awards. Last night’s announcement that New Zealand would move to a Level 4 lockdown, has unfortunately curtailed those plans The gavelhouse.com Waikato Stallion Parade weekend has been postponed to Saturday 4th & Sunday 5th of September and will be run in accordance ...

Te Aroha Stallion Service Scheme

Each year the Te Aroha Jockey Club runs a Stallion Service Scheme.  All the profits from this scheme supports the NZ Thoroughbred Breeders G1 raceday at Te Aroha in April. Make a bid on the stallion of your choice and we will endeavour to secure that service for your mare. Each year we are seeing a decline in foal number so your support for this scheme not only supports a Group 1 raceday but also help to grow foal numbers. Please find attached this year’s stallion details.  If you ...

Course to draw new blood to thoroughbred industry

Like many primary industries, there has been a growing shortage of skilled labour in the thoroughbred industry, but the cavalry are coming. Byerley Park’s Daniel Nakhle has long held ambitions of setting up an educational provider at his South Auckland property, and that dream will come to fruition next month. Nakhle and Byerley Park Manager, former jockey Donavan Mansour, have been working behind the scenes over the last 18 months to get a thoroughbred introductory course off the ground. The ...

Vale Michael Stedman

There was a certain uniqueness about Michael Stedman, an Australian who forged his career as a bloodstock agent on the “other” side of the Tasman, and through that became a strident advocate of the Kiwi-bred racehorse. Reflections on the affable New South Welshman have abounded over the past week in the wake of his death from cancer at age 73 in Sydney. After following a family tradition and qualifying as a pharmacist in his central coast hometown of Terrigal, Stedman found himself increasin...

Wallace buoyed by trans-Tasman feature double

If anyone needed reminding about the ability of Ardsley Stud to raise top-level racehorses, they got a double reminder last Saturday. Outstanding jumper Tallyho Twinkletoe, who created history when winning the Grand National Steeplechase (5600m) at Riccarton, and Sierra Sue, victorious in the Gr.2 PB Lawrence Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield, were both raised and sold on the Wallace family’s Wairarapa farm. Sierra Sue was foaled at Ardsley Stud. She was bred by John Fokerd, who subsequently dispers...