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Plenty of Ways to Go in Stacked Bowling Green
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Lukas Eyes Busy Weekend at Spa and Beyond
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120 Consigned to Texas Summer Sale
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Belmont Also-Rans Start Second Half in Jim Dandy
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Observations: July 26, 2018
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Victor Espinoza Improving in Hospital After Fall
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Goodwood Catalogue Grows Further
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Golden Brown Joins Haskell Field
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Triple Crown Winner Justify Retired From Racing
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Triple Crown Winner Justify Retired From Racing
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July 26 Insights
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Silver Flash Tempts Goddess
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‘Catalina’ A New Bruiser for Union Rags
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Success No Accident For Jockey Bishop
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World Cup Purse Up To $12 Million
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Atzeni Gets Dettori Rides
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Op-Ed: Lack Of Owners Remains Key Concern
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Wonder Gadot Blitzes Rivals in Prince of Wales
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That's good to hear, I know racing needs all the help it can get, for me the younger brigade aren't that interested in the racing so much, more the drinking and social outing,especially cup week,like the fashion shows, most only there for the prizes, not so much the horses and the punting, just a few of my thoughts, maybe I'm to much old school. -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Sam Agars LITTLE PARADISE - R9 (2) Resumed in fine fashion and can carry on winning Jay Rooney LUCKY SAM GOR - R9 (13) Can make it three in a row with a light weight up in class Owen Goulding LIGHT YEARS CHARM - R10 (2) Looked the real deal last season and will come on from Group Three return Phillip Woo AUDACIOUS PURSUIT - R4 (9) Can salute with a step up to 1,600m sure to suit Shannon (Vincent Wong) PERFECT PEACH - R1 (3) Two solid runs over C&D this term should salute from inside...View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
by Kit Gow/TTR AusNZ The mighty eight-year-old mare of Yulong struck again on Saturday at Flemington when felling all before her in the G1 Champions Stakes. Master tactician Chris Waller had faith in his star galloper despite a developing bog track and she dutifully delivered a 2 3/4-length victory. Second last as they entered the home turn in the 2000-metre event, it wasn't hard for James McDonald to pick a path out wide for Via Sistina (Fastnet Rock) and send the mare hurtling to the front when the pack parted around them. Leader Tom Kitten (Harry Angel) stuck on bravely as the mare passed him but was no match for her turn of foot – neither was emerging talent Zambardo (Belardo), the winner of his last four starts, who chased bravely for second. The latter was having his first start at stakes level altogether. “Seeing the Sprint, the Mile and now this race, it's giving everyone an extra taste of the great horses,” said Waller. “She was tough today. She went back from the draw, James didn't panic and it was awesome to see her in the straight.” It's hard to believe what the mare has achieved to date, a sentiment echoed by Waller when reflecting on the last two years with the star mare in his stable. “We were told she was a very good horse,” he said. “Her international form was something special and it's rare for us to get a really high-class horse down here like her, and she was just maturing. We've got her at the right time. They did an amazing job with her over there looking after her. She was a big, raw mare and don't worry about her age. She's just matured. “They are great owners, Yulong. They're sportsmen, they love their racing. I knew not to ask because I knew they'd have liked her to race here. It was a simple as that. “They have given the racing public something to cheer for and what a great day it's been with Ceolwulf, Giga Kick and now Via Sistina. Three serious horses on an amazing day of racing. They're tough horses and when you look after them, they look after you.” The win also marked a remarkable 50th Group 1 win for Waller and James McDonald as a team, to which Waller said, “It is an honour to be working with him. It makes my job and possibly his job that little bit easier. There's no pressure, no pre-race stress, and I didn't even give any instructions. “He said 'I'll go and ride her like Hughie used to ride Winx', best horse in the race, give her some clean air, and I said, 'that sounds good to me'. “I don't see it as a milestone. He's great to work with. That's a privilege in itself. The relationship works well. There's less pressure when you trust each other. I'd go to war with him and he'd do the same for me.” “We're not far off one of the greatest combinations in racing history,” said McDonald. “That's something to aim up at. He's been a great supporter of mine and I'm happy to be a part of his team when you ride superstars like this, it's always a pleasure. It was basically a copy and paste from last year, sit back and let her rip.” Pedigree Notes Bred by Laundry Cottage Stud in Ireland, the bay cost a mere snip when acquired by Stephen Hillen Bloodstock for 5,000gns from the Jamie Railton consignment out of the 2019 Tattersalls December Yearling Sale. During her European tenure, the daughter of Fastnet Rock secured the G1 Pretty Polly Stakes. Sent back through that same ring in 2023 by Grove Stud, Via Sistina joined the Yulong fold when purchased for 2.7 million gns by Evergreen Equine at the December Mares Sale. At the same sale, her unraced dam Nigh (Galileo) brought 200,000gns on the bid of Lucky Vega, another Yulong entity, in foal to Too Darn Hot. One year later, Yulong also snapped up Via Sistina's Bated Breath half-sister Via Sienna for €400,000 out of Arqana's Vente d'Elevage and signed the ticket as Willingham. Nigh is a half-sister to Britain's champion three-year-old sprinter Kingsgate Native (Mujadil). Nigh produced a colt by Too Darn Hot in 2024 as her most recent documented foal. Saturday, Flemington, Australia CHAMPIONS STAKES-G1, A$3,000,000, VRC, 11-08, 3yo/up, Open Weight, 2000mT, 2:07.91, hy. 1–VIA SISTINA (IRE) , 57.0, m, 7, by Fastnet Rock (Aus) 1st Dam: Nigh (Ire) (Broodmare of the Year-Ire), by Galileo (Ire) 2nd Dam: Native Force (Ire), by Indian Ridge (Ire) 3rd Dam: La Pellegrina (Ire), by Be My Guest (5,000gns Ylg '19 TATDEC; 2,700,000gns HRA '23 TATDEC). O-Yu Long Investments (Mgr: Y Zhang); B-Laundry Cottage Stud Farm (Ire); T-C J Waller; J-J B Mc Donald; A$1,811,500. Lifetime Record: G1SW-Ire, MG1SP-Eng, G1SP-Fr, 29-16-4-5, A$19,481,893.Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Arion.co.nz catalogue-style pedigree. 2–Zambardo (NZ), 58.5, g, 4, Belardo (Ire)–Zambezi (NZ), by Zabeel (NZ). 1ST BLACK TYPE. 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE. 1ST GROUP 1 BLACK TYPE. O-C E Holt, P W Steele, Mrs S A Steele, M C Power, Miss V Joli, P J Crotty, P I Sweeney, D M Fallon, R J Fleetwood, L R Matthews, E Campbell, C S Racing (Mgr: A J Boyd), H M Bastone, L A Agosta, J M Storer, R K Stephens & N Hasell; B-Fairdale & Goodwood Studs, Central, (NZ); T-M Price & M Kent Jnr; J-Jamie Kah; A$540,000. 3–Tom Kitten (Aus), 59.0, g, 5, Harry Angel (Ire)–Transfers (Aus), by Street Cry (Ire). O-Godolphin; B-Godolphin Australia (Vic); T-Anthony & Sam Freedman; J-B Melham; A$270,000. Margins: 2 3/4, 3/4, HD. Odds: 0.80, 13.00, 9.00. Also Ran: Pier (NZ), Light Infantry Man (Fr), Attrition (Aus), Alenquer (Fr), Golden Path (NZ), Point King (Ire), Kovalica (NZ), Benagil (Aus). Click for the Racing Australia chart. VIDEO. The post Twelve Group 1s And Counting For Via Sistina appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
The Joe Pride-trained Ceolwulf (NZ) (Tavistock) landed the Gr.1 Champions Mile (1600m) at Flemington after a stirring 400m battle with runner-up Pericles with a nose margin in his favour. The five-year-old son of Tavistock was well and truly headed by Pericles (Street Boss) inside the final furlong but relished the fight when galvanised under rider Chad Schofield on a testing Heavy 9 track. The last start winner of the Gr.1 King Charles III Stakes (1609m) is now a four-time Group One winner at a mile and proved he had no issue with interstate travel when racing outside of Sydney for the first time. “That was fantastic, really special. I love winning races here,” Pride said. “This horse has really turned it on in the second half of the preparation and has strung a couple of very good wins together. “I thought at the 200m that he wasn’t enjoying it. He was wandering around a little bit but as soon as Pericles challenged him he rallied and then it was a really good go to the line with two good horses. “I’ve thought for a long time he’s the best horse I’ve trained and with his last two wins, he’s certainly cemented his spot there. It’s great work from the team at home and it’s a big effort to get these horses here on the big days. He’s never travelled away before, but he’s handled it really well and we’ll be back. “I’d love to be back here for the Cox Plate (Gr.1, 2040m). Whether or not he is as good at 2000m as he is at a mile, we’ll find out in the autumn (and) probably in the Queen Elizabeth. “I normally travel my horses at some stage of their career but through circumstance he hadn’t had a trip away, but it’s nice to see him do that today as some horses don’t like it, don’t enjoy it, but he’s relished it.” Winning rider Chad Schofield said the win was gutsy. “He jumped really well today and he took the most out of that good jump and put himself in a more forward position and when the race heated up around the 600m, I was still going really well,” he said. “Mr Brightside was gone and I had to get off his back and get going. He ambled into it and then he had a good look when he hit the big Flemington straight for the first time and he got a bit lost for a while until Pericles got in front of him and then he could see him with his blinkers and he was the stronger horse late. “If you had asked me how I was feeling at the 400, I’d have said it was race over. He ambled up and came into it but in the Flemington straight he put his head up and baulked. That allowed Pericles to get a margin on me, and when he saw him he went again.” Ceolwulf was bred by Cambridge Stud owners Sir Brendan and Lady Jo Lindsay and is a son of the Shamardal mare Las Brisas. The gelding is a graduate of the 2022 New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale, where Pride and part-owner Leighton Howl went to $170,000 to secure him from Riversley Park’s draft. Ceolwulf has now had 25 starts for seven wins and seven placings to advance his career earnings to A$10,936,795. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Stephen Marsh had to wait until the 24th season of his career to win his first Gr.1 Barneswood Farm New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m), but an emerging superstar gave the Cambridge trainer his missing piece at Riccarton on Saturday with a performance that was worth every moment of that wait. Well Written (Well Written) joined Legarto (NZ) (Proisir) (2022) and Seachange (NZ) (Cape Cross) (2005) as only the third unbeaten winner of the 1000 Guineas in the last 20 years, and her three scintillating victories have come by a combined margin of more than 12 lengths. It has been a dizzying rise to the top of the three-year-old crop for Well Written, who began her career with a three-length debut victory over 1200m at Ellerslie less than two months ago on September 20. She then stepped into stakes company for the Gr.2 Soliloquy Stakes (1400m) at the same venue on October 18 and blew her rivals away by six and three-quarter lengths. Those two breathtaking performances made Well Written one of the highest-profile runners of the entire New Zealand Cup Carnival in Christchurch this year, and she jumped as a red-hot favourite for Saturday’s 1000 Guineas at $1.50. In the end, the only nerves she provided for her connections and supporters came before the race even started. She got stirred up behind the gates and kicked and reared and had to be loaded into the starting gates riderless. But from that point on, the race could hardly have gone better. Well Written was given a perfect run by regular rider Matt Cartwright and settled in fourth on the outside of Cream Tart (NZ) (Hello Youmzain) as Cool Aza Rene (Cool Aza Beel) and Origin Of Love (Snitzel) set a moderate pace out in front. The Te Akau Racing pair still led the field rounding the turn into the home straight, but Well Written cruised up alongside them without Cartwright having to make a move. When Cartwright finally pushed the button, the race was immediately over as a contest. Well Written exploded away with a turn of foot that stamped her as one of New Zealand racing’s most exciting prospects. Cartwright began to ease Well Written down in the final 50m, then stood up in the saddle in a celebratory salute as the favourite crossed the finish line two and a half lengths in front of Lollapalooza (NZ) (El Roca) and Belle Cheval (NZ) (Savabeel). “There’s a lot of relief,” Marsh said. “I was nervous today with the expectations there, and it wasn’t good for the heart when she wouldn’t load. “But I’d just told Matt to ride her like the best horse and don’t panic. I wanted him to pretend it’s just another race, put her there and put her to sleep. I was happy when he didn’t peel off at the top of the straight. He just sat in the slipstream for a bit longer and then came out. “From that point on, it was something else to watch. It was pretty special. It’s the first 1000 Guineas we’ve won, and she’s just a special filly. She’s got that bit of freakishness about her. It’s exciting to have horses like that in your stable and makes the job so much easier.” Marsh and his bloodstock agent Dylan Johnson paid a sale-topping $80,000 to buy Well Written from Brighthill Farm’s draft in the 2024 NZB National Online Yearling Sale on Gavelhouse Plus. Her flawless three-start, three-win career has now earned $462,875 in stakes. Marsh’s large syndicate of owners that originally raced Well Written all sold down their share after the Soliloquy Stakes, with major international player Yulong Investments coming into the ownership. Saturday’s blistering performance came carrying their familiar emerald green and white colours. “This is a great result for the Yulong team, we’re delighted to have them involved, and it’s also great for all of our previous owners that sold down – a lot of them are here today,” Marsh said. “I want to make mention of a special lady, Jane Henderson, an owner who’s very sick and had to late-scratch from coming down here today. I hope this is a real tonic for her, and we’re all thinking of her.” Well Written became the second Group One winner for Cartwright, who won last season’s Tarzino Trophy (1400m) aboard Grail Seeker. “She’s a very, very good horse,” Cartwright said. “The only concern she gave me was when she got a bit hot behind the gates, but as soon as they opened, she knew the job was on. She travelled beautifully. I tried to count to ten in the straight before letting her go, but I probably only got to six. “Gee, she’s exciting. She was a bit green out in front, she was going that fast that her legs couldn’t really keep up. I don’t know where her ceiling is, but she’s one of the best horses I’ve sat on.” Well Written’s victories in the Soliloquy Stakes and 1000 Guineas have carried her to the top of the table in the NZB Filly of the Year Series with 20 points. Lollapalooza sits in second place with 16 points. Saturday’s big win was also a Bonus Eligible race for the NZB Kiwi (1500m) at Ellerslie on March 7, meaning Well Written could compete for the $1 million bonus pool on offer alongside the slot race’s $4 million stake. The winner of any of those races is eligible for a share of the lucrative bonus pool if they go on to finish in the top three in the NZB Kiwi at Ellerslie on March 7. View the full article
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