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The barrier draw is complete for the $4m NZB Kiwi taking place Saturday at Ellerslie.  Romanoff (NZ) (Belardo) was offered by Haunui Farm in Book 2 of Karaka 2024, where he was bought by Ballymore Stables/Paul Moroney Bloodstock/Catheryne Bruggeman for $75,000. He has had nine starts for two wins, two placings and $485,575 in prize-money, headed by Group One glory in the New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) in November. He is eligible for the $1m Bonus Pool. To Bravery Born  (NZ) (Snitzel) was bought by Te Akau Racing’s David Ellis for $200,000 from Curraghmore’s Book 1 draft at Karaka 2024. He has earned $169,575 to date from a 10-race career that has produced four wins and a placing, including a third in last season’s Group Three Matamata Slipper (1200m) and a fourth in the $1m Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m). Well Written (Written Tycoon) is a graduate of Brighthill Farm’s NZB National Online Yearling Sale draft. She was bought by Stephen Marsh Racing and Dylan Johnson Bloodstock for a sale-topping $80,000. The unbeaten filly has already earned more than 17 times that amount in her phenomenal five-race career, headed by runaway performances in the Group One New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) and the $1.5m Karaka Millions 3YO (1600m). She is eligible for the $1m Bonus Pool. Affirmative Action (Yes Yes Yes), like Romanoff, was bought by Ballymore Stables/Paul Moroney Bloodstock/Catheryne Bruggeman from Book 2 of Karaka 2024. He was a member of Wentwood Grange’s draft and was bought for $115,000. His six starts have produced two wins, three placings and $283,275 in stakes. He won the Listed Sir Colin Meads Trophy (1200m) in the spring and finished second in a photo finish to the Group One New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m). La Dorada  (NZ) (Super Seth) was bought by David Ellis – purchaser of last year’s inaugural NZB Kiwi winner Damask Rose (NZ) (Savabeel) – for $190,000 from Waikato Stud’s Karaka 2024 Book 1 draft. She has won five times in a 10-race career and has banked $1.39m, including victories in the $1m Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m), Group One Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m), Group Two Matamata Breeders’ Stakes (1200m) and Group Two Levin Classic (1400m). She also finished third in the $1.5m Karaka Millions 3YO (1600m) in January. She is eligible for the $1m Bonus Pool. Asakura (Churchill) is the only Australian-trained runner in this year’s race. He was bought by Mitch Freedman Racing for $140,000 from Hallmark Stud’s Book 1 draft at Karaka 2024. He has had four starts for two wins and two seconds, including a last-start second in the Group Three CS Hayes Stakes (1400m) at Flemington, and has earned A$77,440 (NZ$88,686). He Who Dares (NZ) (Snitzel) is the third David Ellis-purchased runner in this field, bought for $825,000 from Haunui Farm’s draft in Book 1 of Karaka 2024. He Who Dares has had eight starts for a win, four placings and $374,160 in stakes. He has been runner-up in the $1.5m Karaka Millions 3YO (1600m), the Group Two Auckland Guineas (1400m), the Group Three Matamata Slipper (1200m) and the Listed Sir Colin Meads Trophy (1200m). Panther (NZ) (Ace High) was offered by Rich Hill Stud in Book 1 of Karaka 2024, where Wexford Stables bought him for $280,000. He has had four starts to date, recording a win and three seconds including a last-start second in the Group Three Uncle Remus Stakes (1400m). He has earned $54,760 so far. War Princess (NZ) (U S Navy Flag) was purchased by Exempt Bloodstock and Peter Didham Racing for $77,500 from Haunui Farm’s draft in Book 2 of Karaka 2024. War Princess has had 10 starts for five wins, a placing and $202,860 in stakes. She won the Group Three Eulogy Stakes (1600m) in December and was a last-start fourth in the $1.5m Karaka Millions 3YO (1600m). Lollapalooza (NZ) (El Roca) completes the quartet of NZB Kiwi runners sold by Haunui Farm at Karaka. She was bought from Book 2 by Richardson Racing Stables and Social Racing. She has turned that into $325,575 in prize-money, including a valuable victory in the Group Three Gold Trail Stakes (1200m) and second placings in the Group One New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m), Group Two Eight Carat Classic (1600m) and Group Three Sunline Vase (1400m). The winner of the NZB Kiwi will earn $1.2m, with $600,000 for second and $450,000 for third – boosted by another $600,000 for first, $250,000 for second and $150,000 for third with the Bonus Pool. The fourth placegetter will receive $350,000, with $275,000 for fifth and $125,000 for every other runner in the field. The NZB Kiwi will be run as Race 9 on a star-studded Champions Day card at Ellerslie on Saturday, with a scheduled start time of 5.48pm. View the full article

i think how each  racing code have spent the entain money will decide whether its a dead cat bounce. as to the spreads the clubs put on back in the say. i remember my parents racing a horse or two back in the early 1970's. they would always get a couple of tickets each and then take a friend with them to a room where free afternoon tea was provided for owners.From memory they were allocated 2 or 3 cakes as well as a cup of tea. They still owned one that was in training or racing during the late 80's and 90's,i'm pretty sure the owners got no free afternoon tea by then,but i do recall my parents often commenting on how the local clubs would put on free drinks and food for friends of club members,who only went for the free food and booze and never showed any interest in anything racing. I remember one particular fella who was never a club member and had no interest at all in racing, but would always roll out drunk near the end of the local raceday. funny thing is,my wife and i  raced harness horses for many years and the the only club to ever provide an afternoon tea type thing was forbury. Never once did we get an invite from any club,apart from the forbury club for food..if we won our local club would always invite us in for a drink and addington and forbury as well,but no one else did and we have won a race or two  at most of the south island tracks.

A few things stick out to me. Depending on what clubs or committee members are selling off or developing their land surrounding the racecourse dictates the asthetics and value of the dwellings.  Ellerslie and Awapuni are vastly different to Riccarton, the latter being used for affordable housing. The Trustees managing the capital providing regular revenue, I assume through investment.  Have any clubs built their own houses or commercial buildings as rentals, also a form of ongoing revenue?  I question whether committees make the right decisions for the future of their clubs. As far as club constitutions are concerned, these come up for review on a regular basis usually discussed in detail at an SGM.  I don't know why this important process is brushed off as insignificant by many.  It's a bit late after the event trying to change what's been voted on.

pardon!

The Trough$ were at their fullest in the mid 80's!  Racing then reflected the actual stakes to betting ratios!  The spreads that were available to some on any race day were rather impressive! The Press Room would be  restocked for Every Meeting! Then  the big share market crash in Oct '87.  It played out very much so in the Racing Industry.   Since then their has been a continue decline..  will Entain prove to be a Dead Cat Bounce?  or are they laying new foundation  transformative progressive change into the future?    We be watching that be played out in real time!

The Shadai Race Horse Company, which owns Masquerade Ball (Duramente) and Jantar Mantar (Palace Malice), has confirmed that neither horse will travel from Japan to the Dubai World Cup meeting, citing the uncertainty surrounding the conflict in Iran and across the Middle East. According to a report on the Nikkan Sports website, the stakeholders of the racing club reached their decision “based on the ongoing uncertainty regarding the smooth transportation to Dubai and the difficulty of ensuring the safety of horses and riders due to the lack of a clear end to the conflict.” Masquerade Ball, who was last seen running a close second in the G1 Japan Cup, had been due for a rematch with the winner Calandagan in the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic, while four-time Group 1-winning miler Janta Mantar was set to run in the G1 Dubai Turf. The four-year-old Masquerade Ball, who won last year's G1 Tenno Sho (Autumn) after finishing runner-up to Croix Du Nord in the G1 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby), is likely now to be rerouted to the G1 Osaka Hai at Hanshin on April 5. A trip to Hong Kong is under consideration for five-year-old Jantar Mantar, who holds an entry for the G1 Champions Mile at Sha Tin, Hong Kong on April 26. TDN's Bill Finley yesterday spoke to a number of American connections with runners planned to travel to Dubai, with most adopting a wait-and-see approach. Trainer Jose D'Angelo, who has Bentornato (Valiant Minister) entered for the GI Dubai Golden Shaheen, said, “We are still planning to go. Everything is set up to go. We have talked to the people in Dubai there and they say that everything is good to go.  “Of course, I am worried about it. This is not normal. We see from here on television everything that is going on. But, hopefully, in two weeks the situation will be better.” Racing in Qatar has been postponed this week but, at the time of writing, the Dubai Racing Club was still planning to stage its meeting on Friday, while the Bahrain Turf Club's two-day King's Cup meeting is still intended to go ahead on Thursday and Friday.     The post Masquerade Ball and Jantar Mantar Ruled Out Of Trip To Dubai appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Latest appointment for Trustee   NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE Appointment of a Trustee of the Riccarton Racecourse Recreation Reserve Under section 70(2) of the Reserves Act 1977, the undersigned, Department of Conservation appoints Rodger John Finlay, Director of Christchurch to be a trustee of the Riccarton Racecourse Recreation Reserve in the place of Gordon Hamish Fulton (resigned). Dated at Christchurch this 13th day of October 2025. Signed by ANDY THOMPSON, Operations Manager, Mahaanui/Sockburn District. (DOC R290220) 2025-go5842 15-10-2025 09:02

I may need to be corrected but I thought the land was under the control of the "CHRISTCHURCH RACECOURSE RESERVE TRUSTEES"   Below from when the land was sold after earthquakes and change in ACT by Parliament.    Maybe your focus should be getting some "new blood' into the place !!!!   The partnership seeking to develop land at Riccarton Park Racecourse welcomes Government efforts to reduce red tape. In an announcement earlier today, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith said the government will introduce special legislation which will pave the way for the Joint Venture between the Trustees that govern Riccarton Park Racecourse and Ngāi Tahu Property to develop areas of land on the edge of the racecourse ready for around 600 new homes. Minister Smith also confirmed first home buyers will have an opportunity to invest via the government’s KiwiSaver HomeStart initiative. The Riccarton Park Racecourse land is currently bound by two Reserves Acts and requires zoning changes. Ngāi Tahu Property Chief Executive Tony Sewell says getting the land ready for development would have otherwise been very slow going. "As any developer in Christchurch knows, the margins we work within are unforgiving. Timing is critical when it comes to being able to deliver sections to market in the post-earthquake economic environment." Christchurch Racecourse Reserve Trust Chairman Peter Cordner says the Riccarton Park Racecourse site will remain unaffected, as well as the 1,200 m chute and the training stables on the Yaldhurst Road boundary. This project has been the result of countless hours of planning by both the Trustees and the Canterbury Jockey Club and I believe the very best interests of racing are at its heart. "The ability to free up some land for development will generate capital and a regular income which will benefit racing, the Riccarton Park Racecourse, the Canterbury Jockey Club and the wider Canterbury economy." Tony Sewell says he is encouraged by the pragmatic approach taken by all the parties involved. "As well as bringing developed land to the Christchurch housing market, the timely progression of the Riccarton Park Racecourse development will bring benefits to multiple communities". Background Ngāi Tahu Property Limited is a specialist in property investment, development and rural land ownership.  The company is a subsidiary of Ngāi Tahu Holdings – the investment company for the tribe.  Ngāi Tahu Property also manages the tribes Right of First Refusal. (As part of the settlement of the Ngāi Tahu Claim, Ngāi Tahu negotiated a Right of First Refusal on Crown land to be sold or made surplus within the Ngāi Tahu rohe (region/area), with a view to rebuilding the tribe’s economic base.) Ngāi Tahu Property will purchase its share of the Riccarton Park Racecourse land in a 50:50 joint venture with Christchurch Racecourse Reserve Trust. On behalf of the Joint Venture, Ngāi Tahu Property will develop the land for residential use which will bring much needed land to the Christchurch housing market. The Riccarton Park Racecourse is currently vested in The Trustees of the Christchurch Racecourse as a racecourse reserve under the Reserves Act 1977 (RA) and the Christchurch Racecourse Reserve Act 1878 (CRRA). The Christchurch Racecourse Reserve Trustees are obligated under law to manage the Reserve in the best interests of racing. The Trustees lease most of the Reserve land to the Canterbury Jockey Club (CJC) for the purpose of the racecourse known as Riccarton Park Racecourse. More than five years ago The Trustees and the CJC identified areas of the Reserve which had the potential to generate an income greater than the Trustees could otherwise achieve. The capital from the development would be retained and managed by the Trustees to provide an annual annuity to be made available to racing at Riccarton Park and the maintenance of the Reserve . The land earmarked for development is approximately 38 hectares of more than 121 hectares next to Yaldhurst Road, in the Sockburn and Broomfield areas of North-West Christchurch. The enactment of special legislation for The Trustees and CJC will mean the club can remain competitive with other clubs in New Zealand who have the ability to develop their freehold properties, unencumbered.

Chief might put up a ticket to the 'Night of Champions' champion. but he might not either 😎🏆