Kahma Lass (Darci Brahma – Distinctive Lass) capped off a great Cup Week at Riccarton for Te Awamutu farm Curraghmore when winning the Gr.1 Barneswood Farm New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) on Saturday.
Wearing the colours of her owners Brendan and Jo Lindsay of Cambridge Stud, and ridden superbly by Opie Bosson Kahma Lass defeated a quality field by an official margin of 0.8 lengths.
“I’m so pleased for her breeder Greg Tomlinson of Nearco Stud,” said Curraghmore’s Gordon Cunningham.
“He’s had great success with the likes of Provocative and Beauty Generation and it’s a thrill to see him add another winner at the ultimate level to the list of top horses he’s bred.”
Kahma Lass was born and raised at Curraghmore before being sold to Te Akau Racing’s David Ellis CNZM for $290,000 through their 2019 New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka Book 1 Sale.
“She was always a lovely filly with pure quality about her and we had a big opinion of her so it’s great to see her achieve the ultimate goal,” said Cunningham.
“She’s been brilliantly developed and trained by Jamie Richards. She won her first trial very impressively but then they took their time with her and it’s paid off.
“I must also congratulate Brendan and Jo Lindsay, it’s great to see them with another topliner on their hands and she’ll be a lovely addition to their broodmare band in the future.”
Kahma Lass is by The Oaks Stud-based sire Darci Brahma out of the stakes performed Orientate mare Distinctive Lass, who has been a wonderful producer.
Distinctive Lass is the dam of six foals all winners, including Distinctive Darci (Darci Brahma) whose ten wins include the SING-Gr.2 Merlion Trophy in Singapore, Kuro (Denman) who won eight races – four at listed level and was Group One placed twice, five time winner and stakes placed Southern Lad (Ocean Park) and winners Milunka (All To Hard) and Special Gemstone (Fastnet Rock).
Tomlinson has retained Milunka along with her 2018 Darci Brahma colt and 2019 Savabeel filly, she didn’t have a foal this year and she’s now back in foal to Darci Brahma.
Kahma Lass is the second Curraghmore graduate to win the Gr.1 NZ 1000 Guineas, following Rollout The Carpet (Holy Roman Emperor – Out of Egypt) in 2012.
Curraghmore graduates scored back-to-back wins on New Zealand Cup Day with the Stephen Marsh-trained Glorious Ocean (Ocean Park – Que Sera) picking up her third career win in the Vernon & Vazey Truck Parts Premier (1400m).
Glorious Ocean was purchased by Waikato Bloodstock and Kangyu International Racing for $65,000 out of Curraghmore’s 2019 NZB Select Yearling Sale draft.
“She’s a great credit to Stephen Marsh and his team, she looked really promising as three-year-old and now that she’s matured she’s showing her true potential,” said Cunningham.
“She’s from one of our own families that we’ve had so much success with.”
Bred by Cunningham and David Butler, Glorious Ocean is out of the multiple race winning and stakes placed Daggers Drawn mare Que Sera – a three-quarter-sister to Gr.1 ARC Sires Produce Stakes winner Iflooxcouldkill (Daggers Drawn – Hear’s Hoping).
Que Sera will be represented by a Belardo colt at Karaka 2021 so it was timely that he also sired his first Southern Hemisphere stakes winner at Riccarton on Saturday from his first NZ crop, with Avonallo (Belardo – Real Angel) taking out the Listed Frantic Bloodstock Welcome stakes (1000m) to become his fifth stakes winner.
Earlier in the week Curraghmore was also represented by Gr.3 Canterbury Breeders’ Stakes winner Aimee’s Jewel (Proisir – Aimee’s Idol).
Prepared at Stratford by Trudy Keegan, the daughter of Proisir was having just her fifth raceday start.
Snagged back to the rear of the field from a tricky draw (barrier 11), jockey Lisa Allpress saved ground closer to the rails before presenting the mare inside the final furlong, finishing over the top of her close relation Irish Girl (El Roca – Aimees Babe).
Aimee’s Jewel was bred under Cunningham’s Suncroft Bloodstock banner and purchased by Victorian Troy Pannell as a yearling out of Curraghmore’s 2018 New Zealand Bloodstock May Sale draft for $10,000.
Out of the stakes winning Colombia mare Aimee’s Idol, Aimee’s Jewel is the third Group winner for promising Rich Hill Stud stallion Proisir.
Six-time winner Aimee’s Idol is the dam of six foals to race for three winners including Aimees Babe, the dame of Canterbury Breeders’ Stakes runner-up Irish Girl.
Cunningham sold Aimee’s Idol via gavelhose.com in 2017, she was then offered through the online auction house a year later with a Vanbrugh filly at foot and fetched $6,000.
“It’s been a rewarding week,” said Cunningham who is busy preparing a draft of five two-year-olds for this week’s NZB Ready To Run Sale.
Could the next Group winning Curraghmore graduate be amongst them?
“All of our horses get the benefit of our farm and environment so these constant race results just continue to give us plenty of confidence in the horses we offer,” said Cunningham.
“We’re looking forward to the week ahead at Karaka.” -Curraghmore/NZTBA
